DragonBall Z meets Ranma One Half
by RBL-M1A2Tanker
Summary: A revision of a story by Trooper1023. Goten and Trunks are sent to Ranma's world, while strange things happen in their world. Who knows what'll happen next? WIP. Chapter 21 Up!
1. Prelude: When Worlds Collide

**_Disclaimer_**_: DragonBall Z and all character names and distinctive likenesses thereof are trademarks of TOEI Animation.  Ranma ½ is copywright Rumiko Takahashi, Shogakuka, Kitty Film, and Viz Pictures._

**_Author's note:_**_  I give full credit for this fanfic's idea to Trooper1023.  He came up with this crossover, but didn't have time to complete it. I have his permission to modify and continue it.   The first three chapters are, for the most part, his.  I'll take a little leave and touch them up, but from Chapter 4 on it'll be from me.  Just wanted to let you folks in on that.  This story takes place after the Majin Buu saga.  Originally Trooper stated that it was before the saga, but I picked up some inconsitencies for it to be placed in that time period, so I straightening it out. _

_Now, ON THE STORY! __J_

  
**_DBZR1/2_**  
  
**_Part 1: When Worlds Collide  
_**  
_Original concept for this fanfiction story by _**Trooper1023**.  _Chapters 1-3 revised, and story finished by_ **M1A2Tanker**.

It is a lovely morning in Japan.  Birds shake the morning dew off their backs, as their young chirp impatiently for food.  Shades are slung aside to let in the sun, which is starting to make its' presence known to all as the early mists begin to disperse in retreat from its brilliance.   Average folks dressed, and headed for work happy, ready to do anything in Tokyo for yet one more day before the weekend began. 

Sadly, the calm of the early morning isn't going to last in a district called Nerima.  It is an average looking district, with some…not so average citizens living in a martial arts dojo.  Within moments a battle cry is heard for many blocks around…a cry of…

  
"RANMA YOU IDIOT!!!" Wood, and shingles shatter from the roof of the Tendo dojo as a young male sails through a hole he just made.  He is in a rather strange position, his feet tucked in close, with the soles touching.  His arms were splayed out to the sides, with the first fingers, pinkies and thumbs of both splayed out, with the thumbs at a 90 degree angle to the forefinger.  Looked rather ridiculous, yet the neighbors pay little heed…it's nothing new to them.  Just an average day for them, as abnormal it would be to anyone new to the area.  
  
As he disappears into LEO (Low Earth Orbit), Akane puts her favorite mallet back in hammer-space, huffs, and storms off to take out her anger and frustrations another training dummy. "That perverted jerk! I hope I never see him again!" she ground out as she entered the training area.  Akane was the youngest of the three Tendo daughters at 16, and the only one willing to maintain the Tendo School of Anything Goes Martial Arts.  She was short, with a mop of dark hair that looked slightly blue.  By all accounts she wasn't ugly, very pretty in fact, and to many of the males in Nerima, she was considered a prize.  However, the young man whom lived there, and incidentally had just been launched out through the roof, had a tendency to say the wrong things, even if he meant well, drawing her ire and her mallet many a time.    
  
Outside, the young man, known as Ranma, makes landfall, or, to be more precise, waterfall.  A geyser of water blasts high into the air.  Ranma isn't seen for several minutes until she pops her head up from under the surface.  A person new to the area would have gone into shock upon seeing a handsome young man fall into a pond, and a buxom young woman get out in his place.  Then again, the same newcomer wouldn't have known about Ranma's affliction with a curse that turns him into a beautiful red-headed woman when splashed with cold water.  Most of the regular folks knew well that strange things happened around there, so it wasn't a surprise to them anymore.

"DAMN! Of all the places that I could land, it HAD to be the pond! Man, that uncute tomboy could never take a joke." Ranma hauls herself out of the pond, dripping wet, and walks over and bangs on the door of the Dojo. Kasumi pulls it open.  
  
"Oh my! I didn't even hear you get up, much less go outside Ranma. Would you like to come in and get some hot water?" Kasumi asks in her usual, forever-friendly manner.  The oldest of the three Tendo daughters at 19, she was considered to be the calmest, most normal of the three, and an excellent cook.  Always looking at things in a positive manner, and rather unable, it seemed, to become angry, she was a calming influence on the household; although, the others have wondered if her calmness was a sign of how dense she was, or if she was just ignoring the chaos around her.  She was the tallest of the three, with long brown hair draw up into a flowing ponytail.  Her features were just as fair as her sibling, if not more so, yet she wasn't fought over hardly at all, which wasn't a bad thing in her book.  
  
Ranma barely notices Kasumis' cheerfulness as she replies, "Thanks a lot, Kasumi." She stalks after the eldest Tendo sister. Another splash later, Ranma walks back out into the living area of the Tendo's home. As usual, Soun and Genma are playing shogi. Feeling like hitting something, Ranma catches the leg of the chair his father is sitting on with his foot and rips it out from under the older man, who hits the floor hard.  
  
"Boy, what is your problem?! Have you no respect for your father!?" Genma yells, more hurt than surprised, at his son.  He takes an angry swing, but Ranma dodges skillfully and retaliates in kind, knocking him through the nearest wall.  
  
"Oh shut up, old man! I don't wanna here from you." Ranma turns and heads back up to his room, feeling slightly better_.  "At least school's over. Now I've got the whole summer to do whatever I want!"  
_  
* * *  
  
A different sun rises over a different horizon. This light falls on a different city, Satan City, on one building in particular. The words "**Capsule Corp**." are displayed boldly on one side of the hemisphere-like building.  
  
A young man named Trunks stirs in his bed as the sunlight streams through his window and onto his sleeping form. Groggily, he sits up and rubs his eyes. He is about to get out of bed and get ready for school when he realizes that he's on summer break now. "YEAH!! Finally! I though school would never end." Trunks is about to slip back under the covers when…  
  
"OH TRU~NKS! GET~UP!" Bulma's singsong voice wafts through the lavender-haired half-saiyajins' door. Bulma was the President of Capsule Corporation, the maker of cars, houses, planes, and anything else that can be created and placed into a small capsule.  She was also a highly intelligent woman in her own right, even a genius, according to some.  She was a beautiful middle-aged woman, curved and filled out in all the right places, with light green hair that simply hung down, although her hairstyles changed frequently.  Trunks groans loudly, pulls himself out of bed, and whips the door open.  
  
"What is it, Mom? I wanna sleep some more…" he begins, then headed back into the bed and yanked the cover over his head high until his head was hidden.  
  
"I doubt that. Better get down here and eat your breakfast. I'm quite sure you want to get your chores done BEFORE Goten decides to give up waiting for you…" Bulma never gets the chance to finish.    
  
"Oh yeah, that right! YES!! " Trunks eyes burst open with joy.  With a speed far beyond that of a normal ten year old, he was out of the bed bouncing around, and was heading for the door when his mom entered.  
  
"Ahem!" Trunks stops his antics, embarrassed. "As I was saying: you may be a ten-year-old super-saiyan, but you still have to eat and do your chores. So hurry up, or Goten is going will be banging on the front door before you know it." Trunks needed no more encouragement. He bolts for the bathroom, usual black jumpsuit already in his arms. Bulma sighs, thinking, "_I remember when I was that young. Oh, what I would give to be a kid again."  
  
_

* * *

In an alternate reality, a mischievous god overhears Bulma's thoughts.  Not very big, nor overly powerful, this god was in reality nothing more than an overgrown child, using his powers for nothing more than his amusement.  "_Hmm…,"_ he thinks, pondering, "_feeling your age Bulma?  I think that something can be arranged…but not right now.  I've got other things to do."_  With that, the easily distracted god turned his attention to a different reality.

  
* * *  
  
Farther to the east…"Well Goten, I'm surprised you managed to get up this early on your own. Too bad you can't do this when school is in session…"  
  
"Aw, Mom…it's not like I try to oversleep!!  It just happens that my eyes don't open as well on a school day.  Bye!!" Goten didn't even wait for his mother's response. Already in an outfit similar to his father's, his power pole on his back, he is out the door and in the air in a flash, heading west. Chichi groans and turns to her husband, who is just now coming out of their bedroom.  ChiChi was another middle-aged woman, although not as blessed as Bulma in some respects.  Her black hair was done up into a large bun behind her head, and dressed conservatively in a yellow kimono type outfit.  She was highly protective of her sons, always wanting them to learn as much as possible, although she wasn't nearly as obsessive about it with Goten as she had been with Gohan, her oldest son.    
  
"Oh Goku, do something about that boy's attitude! It's very unbecoming of him you know."  
  


Goku was one of the most powerful beings in the universe, although from his behavior one would be hard pressed to see it.  He stood at 5'6", and always had a pure, innocent smile on his face.  He wore an orange martial arts uniform, with a black and white emblem over his heart of the first martial art style he learned.  On his back was a larger emblem, naming the martial art style he learned from King Kai, the overseer of Earth and everything else in his universe.  Underneath the orange outfit he wore a dark blue short-sleeved shirt, and on his wrists he wore small blue weights.  His hair was an unruly mess, with several shocks of it pointing in several different directions.  Yet, if one looked closely, one would see that he was a strong man.  His blue shirt was tight over his chest, and his bare arms were highly toned and defined.  He was the first Saiyan to achieve the level of Super Saiyan, then considered a myth.  He had died twice before, and had fought many powerful foes.  Currently he reached a level beyond that of a Super Saiyan…twice over in fact.  Goten himself could be described as a miniature Goku.  He turned to his wife

  
"Don't worry about it, Chichi. Goten's a kid, of course he hates school…" he picks up on his wife's rapidly darkening mood. "…but I will talk to him. He still has a need for a good education," Goku finishes quickly, not wanting to anger his wife any farther. Apparently, this is enough to satisfy Chichi, for she turns and heads back to the kitchen with a self-satisfied smile on her face. Goku blinks, and just stands there for a second_. "That's funny.  Despite the fact that I have reached a third level beyond that of a super saiyan, I am and forever will be at the mercy of Chichi. Hmm… "Who can make the strongest fighter in the Universe quake in fear? The answer: his wife!"_ he thought to himself, chuckling._  
_  
* * *  
  
Back at Capsule Corp, Bulma is continuing her work on the latest project.  _"Good…the extrapolations are complete on this.  Now, if I could just figure out which piece is missing from this…"_  
  
"MOM!!!" The yell startles Bulma, and she drops the gadget she was working on.  
  
"ARGH! That son of mine! How many times do I need to tell him 'Don't yell across the house'?" Bulma mutters to herself. She stalks out of the lab and intercepts Trunks as he comes running up the stairs. He's moving so fast he runs right into her. "Trunks! First you yell across the house, then you come running up the stairs! How many times do I need to tell you NOT to do either of those?!"  
  
"Eh he, whoops…" Trunks said nervously.  
  
"Is that ALL you have to say?"  
  
"Ah, sorry Mom! I promise I won't do it again!"  
  
"Good. Now what was it you wanted to ask me?"  
  
"I'm all done with my chores, but I can't find my sword! Where is it?"  
  
Bulma rolls her eyes, her hands on her hips. "That's 'Where is my sword, PLEASE' to you, young man."  
  
Trunks groans, face glowing red. "Aw, Mom! Grrr… whereismysword,'PLEASE'?"  
  
Bulma ignores the way her son rushed his request.  So long as he went through the motions, she was satisfied. "I put it in your father's armor closet, Trunks. Although I wish you wouldn't play with something that dangerous…" She turns around to head back to her lab.  
  
Trunks doesn't even bother to reply. He breaks into a full-out run again, heading for the closet where Vegeta stores his armor. Trunks grabs his sword and scabbard, and straps it on his back as he runs for the front door. Once outside, Trunks blasts off for the meeting place he had set up with Goten.  
  
* * *  
  
The sun is now up in the sky over Tokyo; it's about nine o'clock. On a plateau just outside Nerima, Ranma is going through his normal training routine, after deciding that he needed to get away from the others for a while. Again, Ranma throws lightning-fast punches and kicks at unseen foes. In the background, sunlight sparkles strangely on the waters of the Jepoc Circle.  
  
Many thoughts are running through the young martial artist's mind. Ranma flashes back over the events of the previous year, the people he has met… Akane, Ryoga, Ukyou, Kuno, Mousse, Shampoo, Cologne, and everyone else he's bumped heads with since he came to Nerima…  
  
"Hmm… it's been a while since a new face popped up. Funny, ever since I got here, I've never gone more than a month without somebody new showing up and turning my life on its head. And yet, it's been almost two months now… past experience tells me that it's about time for some new craziness. I'm not sure I want to know what's next though."  He continues his routine.  
  
* * *  
  
Somewhere in reality, Toltiir, the god of mischief, chuckles at Ranma's thoughts.  "Yes, yes I couldn't agree with you more Mr. Saotome.  You do need some more excitement."  He thought to himself a moment, wondering what would be the best way to go about it.  As he thought, he looked around in other realities rather absently, not really looking for anything.  Then, he found just the thing.  "Oh my…a couple of super-saiyans.  Perfect!  Yes, they'll do just nicely."  With that, Toltiir goes into a laughing fit, although it seems rather pathetic and childish sounding.  "Oh what fun this'll be!  I can't wait to see what happens…ahh, and one of them is the son of the woman I listened to earlier!  Even better!  Oh yes yes, this is a great day for me!"

  
* * *  
  
Goten and Trunks meet out over the remains of some destroyed islands, the ones that Cell, a powerful being using cells from the strongest fighters on Earth and created to destroy Goku, blew up to get the Androids, so many years ago.  At the time, Cell needed to merge with two more creations in order to become his most powerful form, and, having found one, made an attempt to flush out the other two so he could finish his evolution.    
  
"Hey Trunks! How ya been?" hollers Goten.  
  
"A lot better, now that school's done!" Trunks says with a grin.  
  
"Heh, me too. So, you wanna spar some?"  
  
"Nah, how 'bout a race? I feel like pushing for some serious speed today."  
  
"Okay!" Goten laughs. "Let's start on the island over there." He points at the southern-most clump of rock.  
  
"Sure, lets go!" The both fly for the starting point of their impromptu race.  
  
Less then a minute later, the two half-saiyajins land on a flat piece of rock, with a straight split across it. By unspoken agreement, Trunks and Goten won't be holding back. They line up with the fissure, using it as a starting line.  
  
"First one to waterline on the far side of the big one over there?" Goten points to the biggest of the islands, also the farthest one from them. It's so far away that it is partially hidden by the horizon.  
  
"Fine by me. On your mark…" The two boys begin to power up.  
  
"Get set…" Their hair stands on end and turns to gold, while their eyes change to the color of cyan as they turn into Super Saiyans.  They both glow as they reach their max power level, the glow ringing around them with an audible sound.  
  
"…and…… GO!!!" And they blast off, golden trails of energy follow behind from their energy glow.  
  
* * *  
  
"Moko… Taka… BISHA!!" The Fierce Tiger Ball, Ranma's biggest to date, soars from his hands. It blasts up into the air, then arcs down into the water. It erupts with a flash of blue light in the center of the island Circle. Suddenly, two flashes of gold appear within it.  
  
"Huh? What was that?" The flashes dissipate with the rest of the blast, and Ranma suddenly stiffens._ "Whoa! All of a sudden, my sense is going off like crazy… weird." _He resolves to go check it out later, and being finished with his routine, turns to head home.  
  
* * *  
  
_"Man! Trunks HAS gotten faster! But that doesn't mean he's gonna win! That's MY job_!" As usual, Trunks and Goten are tied in their race. Goten focuses more, and pulls ahead some, just to have Trunks do the same. Then, with an imposing BOOM, they break the sound barrier, and all over a sudden, a flash of blue engulfs Goten and Trunks. Both boys cry out in surprise, and they struggle to halt their forward progress.  
  
"What on Earth was that?!" Trunks exclaims, instantly back to normal from being a Super Sayian. Goten also powers down, and they look around about them.  
  
"I haven't the faintest idea… hey! Where is everyone??"  Goten exclaims, worried.  
  
"What do you… huh? Wait a second! I can't feel… I can't feel ANYBODY'S energy, except yours!"  
  
"Yea, same here! It's like they disappeared…"  
  
The two boys look around. Goten notices something about the islands below them. "Hey Trunks, look at the islands down there. They're in a circle."  
  
"Huh?" Trunks looks down. "Funny. They were scattered mounds of rock just a minute ago. What's going on?! Did we disappear!?"  
  
Goten's sense flickers. "Hmm…"  
  
"What is it?" Trunks asks.  
  
"I'm feeling about a dozen energy signatures. They can't be any of our friends, 'cause they're weak, but they ARE there…" Goten's voice trails off.  
  
"Yeah, I feel 'em now too. Come on, let's go check them out. Maybe we can figure out where we are while we're at it." Together, they fly off, unknowingly heading for Tokyo, and a certain cursed martial artist…  
  
To be continued…


	2. Chapter 1: Saiyajins in Nerima?

**_DBZR1/2  
_**  
**_Chapter 1: Saiyajins in Nerima?  
_**  
          With his hands stuffed into his pockets, Ranma idly walks down the street, pondering the strange lights he saw earlier during his training routine.  Then, a loud piercing battle cry is heard, forcing its way into his thoughts and capturing his attention.  Spinning around, he sees a young man wearing a yellow and black striped headband, with a sleeveless yellow shirt on charging him.  
  
            "RANMA! PREPARE TO DIE!" Ryoga, an eternally Lost Boy, leaps to attack his rival, bamboo umbrella in hand.  
  
            "Aw, man! Why now?" Ranma groans and dodges the other boy's thrust, then kicks the umbrella from Ryoga's hands.  
  
            "Shut up and fight! BAKUSAI TENKETSU!!" Ryoga pokes the ground at Ranma's feet and it explodes violently, showering the other with shards of tarmac. Ranma grinds his teeth at the pain and decides to change tactics. Ryoga follows up with a vicious punch that Ranma parries and grabs. He applies leverage and the Lost Boy goes flying past him and through a brick wall. Ranma jumps up and yells "MOKO TAKABISHA!" just as Ryoga yells "SHI SHI HOUKODAN!" The green and blue energy blasts cancel each other out, but the fight is far from done. A bunch of headbands come whistling through the hole in the wall, and Ranma just barely slips out of their path. Then Ryoga comes barreling out in the headbands' wake just in time to catch Ranma by surprise. He connects with several powerful punches, knocking the pig- tailed martial artist back. Ranma recovers fast, and as his long-time rival charges, he spins in a perfect reverse roundhouse kick. Ryoga blocks with crossed wrists, but the kick is strong enough to stop his charge. Ranma screams "KACHÜ TENSHIN AMAGURIKEN!" and throws several hundred punches at a high rate of speed at the Lost Boy. He reels under the onslaught, and Ranma closes again. At close range, they again begin trading blows, back and forth, neither letting up. Major collateral damage ensues, normal civilians walk on unworried, and the birds continue to chirp.  It is yet another normal day in Nermia…so far.  
  
* * *  
  
            Trunks and Goten land on a rooftop at the outskirts of Tokyo. Leaping down into an alley, they walk out onto the street and start looking around. Goten remarks "Hey, I think that two of the energy signatures I feel are close by."  
  
            "Yeah. Come on lets check it out." Trunks starts up the street, with Goten following.  
  
            A few people pass by, giving the two boys funny looks. Goten's spiky hair, red and blue fighting martial arts outfit, and power pole staff draws several stares, and while Trunks' black jumpsuit and blue jacket look pretty normal, his lavender hair and the sword strapped to his back defiantly isn't, especially not with a ten-year old child. No one messes with them though. After all, this is Nerima; the people around here are used to seeing odd things, and these two don't actually look that out of place. However, Ukyou Kuonji, an okonomiyaki chef and one of Ranma's many fiancées, knows a lost person from a lost person… or people as the case may be.  
  
            "Hey! You two look lost. Can I help you?" Goten and Trunks whirl when a feminine voice suddenly speaks up from behind them. A girl, probably sixteen, with long straight brown hair, is poking her head out from the door of a restaurant. "_Whoa… what's with the weapons? The blue-haired kid has a sword, and that looks like a bo staff on the back of the other boy. Those things don't look like they're for show…rather dangerous for kids to be playing with.  I wonder what they are going to do with them?"_ she thinks to herself, appraising the kids._  
_  
            "Uh…. yeah, we are kind of lost. Is this…Tokyo?" Trunks asks nervously. He senses that this girl has a fairly high power level, for a human that is, and turns to Goten. "Hey Goten," he whispers to his friend, "this girl, she's one of the energy signatures that we picked up before. Think we should introduce ourselves?"  
  
            "Hmm…ok, let's find out what we can. This place REALLY doesn't look like the Tokyo I visited once."  
  
            "Yes it is. Where are you trying to go?" Ukyou asks.  She notices them whispering to each other, but couldn't make out what they said.  She dismissed it as they turned their attention back to her.  
  
            "Um… we're not really sure…" Trunks replied, visibly wincing at the weakness of the statement.  Goten just looks at her, curious.  
  
            Ukyou laughs, then smiles warmly at them. "You're not from around here are you?"  
  
            "Ah, no, definitely not." Trunks chuckles. Goten breaks into a smile and a laugh as well.  Ukyou feels a little better, now that these kids aren't so serious.  
  
            "My name is Ukyou. I run this okonomiyaki restaurant. What are your names?"  She got closer to them, noticing that they looked rather strong for children.  "_Wow, these kids look like miniature muscle men.  Where did they come from???"_  
  
            "Mine is Trunks, and this here is Goten."  Goten interrupts with an enthusiastic, "HI!"

            Trunks glares at Goten, then continues, "Uh… we, um… we're kind of, uh, on our own…"  
  
            "Oh, that's too bad…" Ukyou starts to feel a little sorry for these two. "Hey, you want to come inside? We could chat for a while, and maybe figure something out…" her voice trails off as she realizes that they aren't listening.  
  
            "Do ya feel that Goten? That feels like a battle!"  Trunks senses perk up.  
  
            "Yea I feel it! We should check it out…"  The two start to head in the direction of the fight.  
  
            Suddenly, a loud boom batters everyone's eardrums; it's followed by the sound of concrete crumbling, and a few loud crashes. "What the heck was that?!" Both Goten and Trunks jump back in front of Ukyo, and snap into defensive stances as they try to locate the source of the noise. Ukyou groans outwardly, but inside, she's gaping at how fast the boys reacted to the sound, and how far they jumped backwards.    
  
            "_Wow, their reflexes are as fast as Ranma's, and they're lot younger too!  That must have been at least ten feet!_

            "Don't worry about it. Ranma and Ryoga must be going at it again. I swear, those two just don't know when to quit!" Ukyou is shaking her head in resignation. Trunks and Goten look at each other, then at Ukyou, puzzled.  
  
            "You mean this kind of thing happens a lot?" Goten asks in bewilderment. _"Man, what is this place?"_  Even Vegeta, Trunks father, and his father, Goku, knew better than to fight in the middle of a city.  
  


            Ukyo nods, "All the time. I just hope Akane shows up soon. She's the only one that can stop those two once they get started."  She turns to head into the resturant, then notices the two kids still looking at them, only partially relaxed from their stances.  
  


            "Why only her? Is she stronger than both of them…" Trunks can't finish because Ukyou suddenly bursts out laughing.  
  
            "Oh that's a good one! Akane, stronger than Ryoga and Ranma! Ha! No, it's that both of them are vying for her affections. All she has to do is start scolding them, and they both drop the fight and try their best to look innocent!" Ukyou laughs a bit more, until another boom and several more loud crashes sound, much closer than before. She looks in the direction, now worried. "Oh boy, this time it's getting out of hand. And worse, they're headed this way!"  
  
            Goten looks serious as he looks the area over. "What should we do?  There's too many people around here to move in time!"  
  
            "Get under cover. Come on, I know a good place…"  Ukyo starts to say, until she is interrupted by a loud shout.  
  
            "RANMA!!! GET BACK HERE AND FIGHT LIKE A MAN!!!" All three wince at the yell.  
  
            Concrete, wood, and other debris fill the air with a cacophony of sound as the battle moves onto the road that the three are on.  
  
            "ARE YOU NUTS RYOGA?!? YOU KEEP THIS UP AND YOU'RE GONNA HURT SOMEONE!" Ukyou is looking very worried now. To their surprise, she grabs Trunks and Goten and starts running.  
  
            "SHUT UP!! I'VE SEEN HELL BECAUSE OF YOU!! NOW DIE! PERFECT SHI SHI HOUKODAN!!!" A huge green blast rockets through a building and streaks down the street, right toward Ukyou, Goten and Trunks. Ukyou is terrified, and she fears that the rivalry between Ranma and Ryoga is about to get her killed.  
  
            "AAAIIIIEE—!"  Her scream is cut off as Ryoga's energy blast explodes with a deafening roar. The roar dies down, and several seconds pass in which there is no sound heard except the sound of falling rubble. Then…  
  
            "YOU IDIOT!!!!! THAT WAS UKYOU!!! SHE COULD BE DEAD BECAUSE OF YOU!!" In a panic, Ranma comes running through the remains of the building Ryoga blasted. "Ukyou!! UKYOU!!!!" He starts running down the street, disappearing into the smoke. "UKY—" WHAT THE?!?  
  
            Ryoga appears by the building he blew down just as Ranma's yell cuts off abruptly. "_Oh god...what have I done??  How could I have been that stupid! I should have known that Ranma would dodge that blast rather than take it! Now I've killed a person, Ukyou at that! Someone who never deserved to die!"  
_  
* * *  
  
            Ukyou slowly opens her eyes, not knowing what to expect. But whatever she was expecting, what she sees before her definitely isn't! Goten is standing directly in front of her with arms crossed. He has a grim look on his face, and his energy was through the roof.  She could feel it around the young man, and it was more than she had ever felt before.  To Ukyou's left and right, scorched earth marks the power of Ryoga's blast. But the space Ukyou is crouched in, right behind Goten, is clear. Beyond him is Trunks, impossibly floating in mid-air, his arm outstretched, palm facing outward.  She could feel Trunks energy as well, as strong as Gotens'.  "_Whoa…what happened??  Somehow, Trunks stopped one of Ryoga's most powerful blasts, and Goten protected me from the backlash. Who are they!? Are these two even human?! They look like kids, but Trunks doesn't seem any worse for wear after stopping that blast! How is that possible?!?_"  
  
            "YOU IDIOT!!!!! THAT WAS UKYOU!!! SHE COULD BE DEAD BECAUSE OF YOU!!" Ranma's voice echoes about. "Ukyou!! UKYOU!!!!" His footsteps can be heard as he runs down the street. The smoke begins to clear… ""UKY—"  
  
To be continued…


	3. Chapter 2: Things get crazier!

**_DBZR1/2_**  
  
**_Chapter 2: Things Get Crazier!  
_**  
            "UKY—" Ranma's voice suddenly leaves him, and he stops dead in his tracks. Before him is the most bizarre scene he has ever laid eyes on. Hovering about 10 ft. off the ground is a boy, not more then ten. He was turned sideways, with his arm outstretched and palm out, and an intent look on his face. There was a sword strapped to his back. The scorch marks on the ground show that Ryoga's blast exploded in mid-air, at the exact point where the boy is hovering. "_But how can that be possible?!? He's just a kid!_"  Ranma's senses were reeling from the energy that the kid was putting out.  _"I've never seen a technique that allows people to float in mid-air continouesly!  What is he???"_  
  
            Beyond him, on the ground, is another boy, looking to be about the same age as the floating kid.  He had black hair in spiked tufts, with dark eyes.  His arms were crossed before him, his face intent as well.  On his back looks to be a bo, and behind the second boy…  
  
            "UKYOU!" Ranma forgets about the two kids and bolts for Ukyou. "Ukyou?! Are you alright?" Shakily, she just nods in response.   
  
            The smoke finishes clearing, and Ryoga can be seen gaping at the two boys. His mouth works around some, but all he manages to get out is "Wa….who….whe…?"  
  
            Trunks drops back to the ground and walks over to stand by Goten. After making sure that Ukyou is all right, Ranma turns to the two boys. His eyes widen as he realizes how powerful they are. They look at Ukyou, and, seeing that she is ok, they relax, yet looking intently at the cursed martial artist.  Ranma's heart rate slows a bit as he feels their power levels drop. "_But their power STILL dwarfs mine!"_ He finally gets his mouth working. "W-who… are… you?"  
  
            The boy with the bo, speaks up. "My name is Goten. This is Trunks." He indicates the lavender-haired kid with the sword, who takes it from there.  "We were talking to Ukyou when you idiots blasted down the street!" Ranma starts to retort, until he realizes that he was as much at fault as Ryoga.  "You guys are dumb.  You should have taken your fight outside the city.  If I hadn't stopped it, and Goten didn't shield her, she'd have been toast."  

            He pauses. "You two are good friends, I take it?" Ranma asks during Trunks pause.  They both nod, and Trunks continues, "I always thought older kids were supposed to be smarter.  My dad knows better than to fight in a city!  Geez."  Goten tries to stifle a laugh as he thinks of how Goku and Vegeta are always going at it, but he fails miserably. His giggling starts working on Trunks, who quickly realizes what his friend is thinking about. Ranma, Ukyou, and Ryoga all look on as the two boys burst out laughing. When they finally finish with laughing, Trunks notices how all three are staring at him and Goten. "What?" The three teens simply blink at them, still stunned at their actions.  
  
            "_Ok, great. For all that power, they're still kids._"  Ranma is the first one to regain his senses. "How old are you two? Ten?"  
  
            "I'm ten, Goten is nine." 

            "You mind telling us what you guys were laughing about?"  Ukyou asks gently.

            "Oh we were just laughing about all the times our dads go at it.  They never quit."  Trunks says with a grin, then he sobers. "We're kinda on our own."  Goten chimes in with, "We just got in.  We're still trying to figure out where we can stay…"  
  
            "Hey, I don't mind if you stay with me. After all, it's the least I can do for saving my life." Ukyou recovered her wits completely, and is back on her feet.  
  
            "Ah… that's ok, you don't…" Ukyou interrupts him with an admonishment.  
  
            "Don't worry about it. First things first, let's go into my place. Either of you hungry?"  
  
            The two boys cry out, "YEA!!!"

  
* * *  
  
            Two new figures can be seen jumping across the rooftops of Nerima. One is a highly attractive teenage girl, though the pair of maces she carries were anything but attractive. The other is a midget of an old woman, bouncing along on a cane twice her height.  
  
            "Great-grandmother, what is it? What's wrong?"  Shampoo, obviously the teen, asks the old crone.  
  
            Cologne doesn't even slow down a little. "When that blast exploded, I felt two strong energy auras pop up. They disappeared after a minute or so, but now that I'm focusing on it, I can still feel them, and I sense that it's merely the tip. It's like they are so powerful that they are holding it back until that power is needed."  The old woman explained.  
  
            "I don't… by the Elders! I have never felt such power! And it's so focused! Who or what could have that much power and NOT be found out until now?"  
  
            "I don't know, child, I don't know…"  Together, the two Amazons bound across the city, heading for the abandoned battle zone.  
  
* * *  
  
            Inside Ukyou's okonomiyaki restaurant, everyone, even Ryoga, is gathered around a table toward the back. Trunks and Goten are a little nervous under the gaze of the three Nerima teens, but Ranma, Ryoga, and Ukyou are a bit more comfortable, now that the two boys were more confined, and not nearly as dangerous looking with their weapons hanging up on a rack.  

            "So could you guys tell us what technique you used to fly, and how did you stop the blast?"  The two saiyans looked at them, blank.  "Technique?  What technique?" Trunks says, confused.

            The three teen fighters gape again.  "What…you mean you don't need a technique to fly?  Or to stop energy attacks??"  Ranma had his hands on the table, almost in their faces in his ernestness to find out any new moves.  

            "Well, no, not really.  That was a weak attack.  All it took was an equal amount of energy to stop it.  What's wrong with him?"  Trunks pointed to Ryoga, who was furious at two children, strong or not, calling his best attack weak.

            "Oh, nothing.  He just doesn't agree with your assessment of his attack…"  Ryoga interrupted.

            "How dare you call my attack weak!  You are nothing more than children!  You just got lucky that's all!"  Ukyou and Ranma both looked at Ryoga wryly, knowing that the Lost Boy was trying to cover his tracks at his outburst.  

            Goten just looked at the headbanded teen, then smiled.  "Lucky huh?  We should show you how we did it sometime.  Where's the food??"  

            Quickly, food was delivered, and all other questions were halted for the time being.  The teens watched in absolute horror, and not a little disgust, as the two kids packed away more than any of them could ever do.  With a final slurp, Goten proclaims, "Wow!  That was really good!  Thanks!"  Trunks mumbles his thanks as well, still chewing on some rice.

            "So…could you tell us something?"  Ukyou asked.  They nodded.  "What kinda martial arts do you practice?  I've never seen anyone take stances like yours.  I mean, it's obvious that you're strong, but we thought that we've seen all fighting styles that are on Earth."

            "Ah, I don't know what you mean.  You mean our fighting postures?"  The teens nodded.  "I don't know, I just learned how to fight from my mom and brother."  Trunks spoke up, "And I learned how to fight from my dad.  He's a sayian prince."  Trunks said proudly.

            The teens looked at them confused.  "Sayian?  What's that?"  

            "Oh…yea, guess you guys don't know what they are."  Trunks thinks a moment to himself, trying to find the best way to say this without shocking them.  Goten beat him though.  "Sayians' are aliens."  Trunks whacked Goten in the back of the head.  "You dolt!  You can't just tell them that!"

            Goten rubbed his head, saying, "Well, they asked didn't they?  Don't take it out on me."  He looked at the teens, who were now up against the opposite wall.  "What's up with them?"

            Trunks rolled his eyes, as he pulled out a wallet.  "Here guys, here's what my dad looks like.  His dad looks like him, only bigger."  Ranma nervously took the wallet and looked at the picture.  In it was a short man with a pronounced widows peak, and a perpetual scrowl on his face.  His highly toned arms were crossed across his chest as he stared impassively at the camera.  Sitting before him, was a smiling, attractive woman with green hair, and a younger version of Trunks in her lap.  The teens visibly relaxed, no longer envisioning green aliens with three fingers and oblong black eyes.

            "Is this your mother Trunks?"  Ukyou asked, pointing to the woman in the picture.  Trunks nodded.  "She's really smart, she owns her own business and everything!"  Goten enthusiastically filled in.  "Yea, she'll probably figure out something's wrong soon, and build something to come get us."  Trunks said.

            The Nerima teens feel better knowing that Trunks' mother was a genius, and would probably take the strange kids away soon.  

  
            "You people are taking this pretty well. If it were me, I don't know if I'd believe a story like ours," Trunks says.  
  
            Ranma grins wryly. "Stranger stuff has happened around here." He begins to elaborate, but Ukyou accidentally trips on Ryoga's foot while trying to get past Trunks. She falls, and one flailing arm knocks a glass of cold water flying.  
  
            "What the?! You're a girl now!"  Trunks jumped up onto the chair he was sitting on in absolute shock.  
  
            "Huh? What's going on!?"  Goten had also jumped up on his chair, only he was standing on the chair back.  
  
            Both saiyans gape openly after seeming Ranma's features shift and his mass redistributes itself. The mass of raven-black hair had lightened to a flaming red and several inches of height disappeared. Ranma looks up embarrassed.  
  
            "Eh he…" Even his, or her?,  voice had changed; it was higher in pitch now. Goten and Trunks look on, almost ready to book. "Just listen, ok? It's a Jusenkyo curse."  Ranma quickly says, noticing that they were eyeing the door.  
  
            They both start. "A what?"  
  
            "A Ju-sen-kyo curse. There's a place in China known as Jusenkyo. It's a cursed training ground. The magic springs that dot the area contain the form of the first thing that landed, and drowned, in that spring. I got dumped into the Spring of Drowned Girl. Now whenever I get splashed by cold water, I change into a girl. Hot water changes me back."  
  
            Now that they understand what just happened, both boys shut their jaws quickly, although they were still wary.  "_What other weird things are there here?"_  They think to themselves.

            "You guys wouldn't mind telling us just how you got so strong would you?"  Ryoga asked, finally past his anger at their innocent insult.

            They shrug as they look at each other.  "Well, both of our dads are strong fighters.  I'd guess you could call them masters, although my dad thinks that his has a natural nack for fighting.  I think it bothers him sometimes too."  Goten looked at Trunks in surprise.  "_Whoa, he's never told me that before._"

            Just then, someone bangs on the door of the shop. Ukyou huffs, mumbling, "I put up the 'now closed' sign for a reason, are they blind or something?" and heads for the door. She pulls it open and is surprised to see Cologne and Shampoo standing there. Before Cologne can speak, her granddaughter does.  
  
            "Spatula girl see big fight, no?"  The busty Amazon pushes her way in.  
  
            "See it? I got caught in the middle of it! What do you want to know?"  Ukyou exclaimed, angry at Shampoo's brazen entry into the resturant unbidden.  
  
            Cologne has to collect her wits before she trusts herself to speak; the amount of power emanating from the back of Ukyou's shop was staggering. "Child, do you realize that there are two powerful entities in your home?"  
  
            "Yes Cologne, I know very well. I invited them in after the two of them saved my life." Shock registers on both Amazons' faces. "You want to meet them?" Ukyou asks, motioning towards the back.  
  
            "Yes child, please… introduce us…" Cologne's voice trails off. "_This is definitely not what I expected. With that kind of power, they could do whatever they wanted. And yet from what Ukyou says, they are acting quite civilized. _She bounded over towards the back room, as Ukyou opened the door.  "_It was always believed that anyone who gathered this much power would be corrupted by it.  But why, and how are they hiding their power?  I can feel that they have more than I can sense on the surface."  _Her thoughts ended when she looked into the room.  
  
To be continued…


	4. Chapter 3: Super Saiyans revealed

**_DBZR1/2_**

**_Chapter 3: _****_Super Saiyans revealed._**

Everyone in the room look at the newcomers, some with open curiosity, others with apprehension, even outright anger.  Ranma was the latter.  Goten quickly notices the two and says, "Um, Trunks, there's somebody _else _here."

"Huh?" Trunks looks over his shoulder quickly, taking in the two Amazons, then freezes. "W_hy am I getting weird vibes from that old woman?"_ He glances at the teen girl, noticing that her hair was an even darker shade of purple than his own.  _"At least I'm not the only one with purple hair here.  Her energy is higher than Ukyou's, but not by much.  I wonder who would win…"_  Trunks starts plotting ways to get them to fight, if just for fun as Ukyou begins the introductions.

"Cologne, Shampoo…meet Goten and Trunks. Goten, Trunks… meet Elder Cologne and her great granddaughter Shampoo, of the Chinese Amazons."  The boys greeted them pleasantly enough…although they couldn't figure out what was wrong with Cologne and Shampoo. 

Cologne simply stood in the doorway, staring numbly at the two boys. "They_ are the two powers that I felt before?!? How could they possibly be so young!?"_

Shampoo looked at the two in confusion. Whatever she had been expecting, this was not it. "_Ha-ya…they are more powerful than…my Ranma? How?"_

For several minutes it seemed they stood there, staring.  Goten and Trunks looked at each other, and simply shrugged as they went back to talking with Ranma and the rest.  Ranma was about to ask them something when Cologne finally spoke up.

"Excuse me Son-in-law, but I must ask these children something."  Ranma merely glared as he said, "Be my guest old ghoul."

She ignored the usual insult as she hopped over to the two boys.  They looked at her quizzically as she peered at them, trying to determine their powers through her own.  She looked them up and down, and then finally asked, "Tell me something young ones.  How powerful are you compared to everyone here?"  The question was probably the most direct she had ever been with anyone, and it floored the others.  Trunks and Goten, for their part, thought for a moment, and then looked to each other, gauging the others abilities.  

Goten turned to Cologne, saying, "Well…I'm not sure if I'm stronger than him, or he's stronger than me, but…"  Everyone was rather breathless as they waited for the next part.

"There isn't anyone here who's stronger than us."  Trunks finished, his arms crossed, and his eyes closed.  A coarse laughter started to fill the room as yet another newcomer entered.  He wore a loose flowing garment, and thick glasses, with long dark hair flowing almost to the floor.  "I find that hard to believe.  There's no way you're both stronger than all of us together, and to prove it, I challenge you!"  Without waiting for a reply the stranger leaped into the air, as Ranma and the others cried out to him, "Mousse you fool!"  

"FIST OF THE WHITE SWAN!!"  A large claw on a chain flew from one of the teen's sleeves, heading with deadly accuracy towards Goten.  There was no way Ranma or any of the other natives could have stopped the attack…there was also no way they could have ever expected to have happen what does happen.  

Goten merely caught the claw in a hand and held it, looking at Mousse with a cocked eyebrow.  "This guy sure is strange."  With that, he crushes the claw without any effort.  Mousse couldn't contain his surprise, or his air as Goten tosses the now 'ball of the white swan' into his gut, knocking him through the wall and into the main dinning area.  Mousse struggles to get up, and manages to get to an elbow, when he sees Goten standing next to him, looking at him inquisitively.  "Are you alright mister?"

"Why…I'll show you!"  With an audible growl, Mousse leaps up, throwing several different types of sharp weapons at the child with a fury he'd never done in any of his combats with Ranma.  The rest watch through the hole Mousse made while Trunks calmly walked up to the door, hardly interested.  Cologne watched both boys intently, but couldn't detect any real rise of power in Goten.  

For his part, Goten caught every single weapon thrown at him and placed it on the floor in an orderly pile.  He moved so fast that his arms seemed to be a blur, but there was no real effort on his part.  "_Absolutely amazing…this child has not only mastered the Amaguriken technique, he has also managed to learn how to do it without using up any energy…at least, I think that's what he's done."_  Cologne had never ever doubted her insights, yet the young boy was making her do just that.  It was a new, and rather unpleasant feeling, and she didn't like it at all.  She turned to Trunks, who was lazily leaning up against the wall, watching with an eyebrow cocked at Mousse's antics.

"Goten, maybe you should put this guy out of his misery already?"  Trunks called out, more than ready for the show to end.

"Ok."  Goten smiled.  Mousse didn't heed this though, and came in swinging.  Goten simply caught the punch, then stretched out his other arm, palm out.  Mousse looked at it, confused.  Goten then swiftly pulls the arm back and then swiftly forward, knocking Mousse out through an open door, courtesy of Trunks.  Mousse hits a dumpster across the way, and is knocked out cold.  "What a weird guy, I hope I didn't hurt him too badly."  Trunks shrugged as he walked back up to his friend.  The both looked to the rest of the group, all whom had their jaws on the ground.

"Ahh…sorry about the wall Ukyou."  Goten apologized, bowing low.  

"No….no problem…"  With that she fainted.  It would be hours before she would recover, even with Cologne there, so Ranma offered his place up for sleeping space for the time being.  They accept, and they head over to the Tendo dojo.

****

**_Back in Trunks and Goten's dimension…_**

"ChiChi…something's wrong.  I can't sense Goten or Trunks energy."  ChiChi and Gohan both looked to Goku as he told them.  He continued, "I don't know where they are, but I'm going to go looking for them."  Before either could say anything, Goku had rushed out the door, and launched himself into the air, heading in the direction that Goten had taken earlier in the morning.  Gohan merely comforted ChiChi as she started to worry.

In no time at all, Goku found himself over the area where Cell had first attacked Earth, all those years ago.  No ghosts though were there to attack him, nor any other enemies for that matter.  "_I can sense their residual energy…they were here, not long ago.  But it's fading fast.  I have to follow the trail quickly, or it'll grow cold."_  Goku powered up to Super Saiyan and put all concentration into his senses, trying hard to track the their energy trail before it vanished completely.  He flew forward slowly, yet anyone who was watching would have seen nothing more than a golden comet.  

Suddenly, he stopped.  The trail ended abruptly over an outcropping of rock jutting up into the sky.  He no longer could sense the energy…yet…he could sense something.  "It feels like the boys…but they aren't here.  This doesn't make any sense."  He thinks a moment; "_Maybe if I try to track them with the Instant Transmission technique I can get a better fix on where they are."_  He placed the first two fingers of his right hand to his forehead, and concentrated.  Several minutes passed as he slowly closed in on them…sorta.  "_Yes…I can sense them.  But it's like they're in Otherworld.  No…wait…that's it!  They aren't in this dimension!  They're in another!"_  He realizes, and, with renewed vigor, he concentrated as hard as he could.  Sweat dripped off of his skin as he managed to at least detect the general location of where they were.  With a last bit of effort, he used the Transmission, and was gone.

**_Miles away…_**

"What's happening to me!!!"  Bulma shrieked.  Her voice was higher pitched than it had been in years, and her clothing was several sizes too large.  The room seemed bigger as well, and it was getting bigger by the minute.  

She had been in her bedroom brushing her hair after Trunks left, when she felt some kind of energy envelope her.  She could see a glow surround her body in the mirror, and then she saw the changes begin.  The few wrinkles she had managed to hide well smoothed away, and her skin tightened and became as vigorous as it had been in her search for DragonBalls on Namek.  Her hair didn't feel nearly as thin, her bust firmed up, and her body didn't ache.  _"Maybe Vegeta made a wish for me!  Wait a sec…he wouldn't do that.  He's too stubborn to think of something like that."_  She would have pondered what brought about this wondrous change if she wasn't busy enjoying feeling young again.  She looked at herself in the mirror, positively glowing, when she noticed something.  She looked down at herself, and saw that her blouse seemed baggy.  As had her pants…and her shoes felt too big.  She looked at her hands, and with growing horror saw the fingers slowly retract and shrink.  It was at that moment that she did what any sane person would do….she screamed.

Vegeta rushed into the room, ready to destroy anyone who dared attack his mate when he quickly skidded to a stop at the door.  He watched in utter astonishment as his wife tripped over her own clothing and fell to the floor, yelling at the top of her quickly growing in pitch lungs.  "What kind of sorcery is this?  Who would do such a thing??"  He said as Bulma finally stopped de-aging.  She lay on the floor, still wearing her adult clothing, although only her head, some of her arms, and her legs could be seen under the blouse, the pants and shoes lost somewhere else in the room during her panic stricken running.  He stepped over, and with gentleness he wasn't known for, picked her up and held her.  Her face was wet with her tears, and her chest heaved.  With mournful eyes full of tears, she looked up at her husband, and said, "Why me?"  He just gazed in shock at his wife, who was no longer a full-grown woman in her 30's, but was now a young ten-year old girl.

****

"Ahh, my dear Bulma.  You should be happy!  You got your wish!  Besides, it's not everyday that a person gets to regain their youth!"  With that Toltiir laughed up a storm.  He watched in amusement in his looking glass as the proud Vegeta cradled his now small wife into his arms, and just held her as she cried.  If eyes could kill, and with a Saiyan there was always the possibility that they could, anyone in Vegeta's gaze would have soon become nothing more than dust.  

Wiping the tears from his eyes from his laughter, Toltiir slowly regained himself.  "Well now, I wonder how those two kids are doing…what…how did he get there??  Damn!"  The god of mischief finally noticed that Goku had traversed to Ranma's world.  "Damn damn damn!  How did he do that!! Dammit, he'll mess up my fun!"  He notices something else…"DAMN!! Now he's out of my reach! That island circle is the only entrance I have to that world!  I have no power beyond it!  DAMN THOSE SHINTU MONKS!" 

He fumes for a while, thinking hard.  "Maybe…maybe this won't be as bad as I think it is.  Yes…yes, this might actually turn out better than I thought."  A smile spread upon his face as he pondered the possibilities.  "I'll just have to wait and see.  And when he attempts to traverse back, then I'll have him."  Once again, his hall fills with the peals of his, rather pathetic sounding laughter.

****

**_In Ranma's dimension…_**

Goku struggled to stay aloft.  He had spent a lot of energy trying to track the boys, but so far it had been worth it.  "Man…I made it.  But now…I'm too weak to use the transmission again to…to get me to them.  Guess I'm…I'm flying there…" Goku nearly fell into the water as his concentration slipped. "I better get on land fast, before I fall and drown."  With an effort, he makes his way to a cleft of land nearby, the same spot that Ranma had been doing his routines at.  He managed to land, and slowly started to catch his breath.  As soon as his breathing stopped being labored, he started walking in the direction of the boys.

****

**_At the Tendo Dojo…_**

Nabiki was saying… "So let me get this straight. You two were having your race, all is fine and good, but when you broke the sound barrier, this blue light appeared around you. When it cleared, you two found yourselves over the Jepoc Island Circle?"  Nabiki was the middle daughter, and the most devious.  If there was a way to get money out of something, she would find it.  Like her sisters, she was an attractive young woman, if not built a little better than them, with short brown hair that framed her face.  She was also very intelligent, and was usually able to make sense of anything, although it was probably from all the practice she had in coming up with devious schemes.

"That's what happened." Trunks states simply.  They had explained everything they could do the residents of the dojo, with Ranma tossing in a tidbit of info here and there when he could.  They sat on their legs at the family table with Kasumi, Nabiki, Akane, Soun Tendo, and Genma Saotome.  Ranma, Cologne, and Shampoo were standing…well, Cologne and Shampoo was.  Ranma was hanging from a beam in the ceiling, doing a sit-up once in awhile as he listened.  

            Cologne narrowed her eyes, picking up a tidbit of info in the boys description of the blue energy that had been around them when they found themselves lost.  That, plus the part of Ranma mentioning two flashes of gold, added up to something, although she wasn't sure what just yet.  

            "_It has something to do with Ranma's energy, and the power of these two boys in the Jepoc cicle.  This must be the god of mischief's work.  He would do something like this."_  Her thoughts were broken when Akane asked, "What do you mean by 'powered up'?  And what's this about two flashes of gold?"  Cologne's regards for Akane's intellect went up a notch.  "_She picked up something as well I see."_

            "Well, we powered up to our full strength.  How can you have a race if you don't go all out?"  Goten nodded in agreement to Trunks statement.  

            "So you mean to say that you are even more powerful?"  Akane stated, surprised.  Cologne's chuckles got everyone's attention. "Of course young one.  I suspected that they were much more powerful earlier, but even I can't tell just how powerful.  I was hoping earlier that they would show their true strength, but Mousse proved that they didn't need it.  

            "You mean…you want to see us at full power?"  Goten asked.  Cologne nodded, rather curious at what would happen next.

Goten looked at Trunks, who simply shrugged.  They both stood up, and walked out into the backyard, leaving their weapons in the den.  The rest followed, intrigued, none more than Ranma and Cologne though.  Both boys stood before the pond, turned around to face them, and planted their feet shoulder width apart.  "Guess we'll see how strong you are now Trunks."  

"Yea, well, I bet I'm stronger than you are!"

"You're on!"

            Cologne listened to the boys, amazed at how pure their hearts were.  "_They are powerful, but still children.  This shall be VERY interesting."_

            With their hands clenched into fists, and their arms bent at the elbows, they both proceeded to power up.  The air around them seemed to waver, and small rocks slowly rose from the ground.  The hair on both boys slowly rose and stood straight up, and their clothing started to flutter about.  Both of them were grunting with effort.  Everyone's eyes were riveted to them, amazed at the energy pouring from them.  For a moment it seemed that they were done charging, but that wasn't the case.

            "Here goes, on the count of three, we go up to the next level!"  Everyone's jaws dropped, not realizing that they weren't even done.  

            The counted off together, "Three…two…one…" The ground underneath them started to break, and crater, while lighting bolts singed the air about them.  

"…NOW!  HIIIYYAAA!"  Both boys quickly pushed themselves to the next level, and a blast of light enveloped them.  The force and suddenness of the lights' appearance threw everyone back, even as the two pushed their levels as high as they could.  As the Tendo residents picked themselves out of the debris, they could only gaze at the two boys.  Their hair had changed, from black and lavender, to gold, and their eyes had changed from black and blue to cyan.  An audible glow could be seen, yes, even felt around them as the held their stances.  The air was charged with power, their faces intense.

            With astonishment, Ranma gazed at the two small warriors.  _"My god…their power…I've…I've never felt anything like it!  It has no end!  How could they be so powerful!"_

            Akane was the first to actually say what he had been only thinking. "How can you two be so strong!  It's impossible!"  Ranma looked at her, and saw true fear in her eyes.  He looked back to them.

            "That's easy!"  Goten smiled, relaxing his stance.  Yet the power didn't fade when he did so.  The both walked up to the residents, who, against their instincts, just looked at them, some in fear, others in wonderment.  The glow around them didn't abate, and their cyan eyes looked them with a confidence that spoke of many battles and training sessions.  They had worked hard to reach their levels, and were immensely proud of themselves for having gotten as far as they had.  They had battled many powerful foes, and they learned from their mistakes.  They were in a level that was unreachable to humans.

"We're Super Saiyans!"

To be continued…


	5. Chapter 4: Now what?

DBZR ½ 

**_Chapter 4: Now what?  _**

            "Super….Saiyans?"  Someone, most likely Shampoo, managed to say.  All the Tendos, Ranma and his father, Genma, Cologne and Shampoo were mesmerized by the awesome display of power before them.  Two young boys stood in front of them, bathed in a golden glow.  Their hair had become golden, and their eyes cyan.  It was the signature transformation of a Super Saiyan, the legendary warrior of the Saiyan race.  

            "Yup."  Trunks said, pleased at their reaction.  "_I'm glad they didn't freak out or something.  That would have made this embarrassing."_   He looked over to his companion, sizing him up.  "Hey Goten, it looks like we're still even Steven."

            Goten looked over at Trunks, and nodded, slightly disappointed.  But he brightened up when he thought of how much fun it was going to be to try to beat him later.  An even fight is a good fight.  Both boys lowered their arms and relaxed slightly, and the audible glow about them faded away, although their features didn't change.  

            _"Incredible," _Cologne thought, "_if that was their peak, then they were right.  There isn't anyone here who is strong enough to beat them.  However, skill might, even if power doesn't."_  She thought a moment, thinking of what techniques that could be used against them, just in case they prove to be corrupt after all.  They were the most powerful beings on the planet, and most of the Elders of the Amazons had agreed that any being that possessed such large amounts of power would be corrupted by it.  The amount of energy these two put out though, far exceeded her wildest imaginations, and beyond her worst nightmare.  

            "Wow…"  That was Ranma, who had finally managed to regain the use of his jaw.  "You were right.  There isn't anyone here who's stronger than you."  Most everyone there sensed a 'but' in the statement, and they weren't surprised at what came next.  

            "But I bet I could beat you, given a couple sparring matches."  Ranma smiled, fully confident.  Akane, one of his many fiancées, just gaped at him.  "_He can't be serious!  Not even Herb had this kind of power!"_   She continued to stare at him as he continued, "You guys wouldn't mind a sparring match tomarrow?  Ah, not as Super Saiyans though."  The two boys looked to each other, thinking a moment.

            Trunks answered first.  "I'm game."  As he spoke he powered down, and his hair returned to its' normal light lavender color, and his eyes back to their normal blue.  Goten had also powered down, returning his hair and eyes back to black, and was nodding enthusiastically.  "Sure!"  Everyone relaxed as the two super beings' energy returned to their normal states.  Genma and Soun though…were still locked in shock.  

            "Hey pops…"  Ranma waved his hand in front of his father.  No response.  "Ah the hell with it."  And with that said, he kicked his father into the pond.  A giant panda reappeared quickly, sputtering and holding a sign that read, "That wasn't necessary!"

            "Yea whatever."  His son snorted. "You'd probably still be here by morning if we left ya that way."  His fathers' reply was to use the sign and toss water at him, transforming Ranma into his female form.  "WHADDYA DO THAT FOR???"  She yelled.  The two kids still hadn't quite gotten used to the idea of gender changing, although transforming into animals didn't seem to startle them at all.

            As the two Saotomes went at it, Trunks was shown a guest room they could use for the time being, at least until Trunks' mother could arrive from their dimension, not realizing that Bulma wasn't in any condition to much of anything at the moment.  Goten remained in the dinning room, watching the battle between father and son.  Nibiki nonchalantly went to her room, while Kasumi went to the kitchen to whip up a large dinner.  Cologne and Shampoo were looking at the two weapons that the boys had brought with them, but trying to look like they weren't interested at the same time.  

            "Great-grandmother, Shampoo would like to see jacket-boy's sword.  Never seen such a design before."  Cologne was itching to look at both, but felt that another opportunity to look at them closer would present it self later.  "Come child, we'll look at them later.  Right now we have to get back to the restaurant."  Shampoo looked at her inquisitively.  "We have things to do."  Was all the tiny old woman would say.  They said their good-byes and quickly left, leaving Soun Tendo, Akane, and Goten in the room to watch the fight.  

            _"Wow, that guy's pretty good.  It'll be fun to fight him!"_   Goten though.   Akane glanced over at Goten, and saw a look of eagerness on the lad's face.  He was leaning forward, and watching closely every move made.  She smiled slightly as she asked, "You like to fight don't you?"  He turned to her smiling and simply nodded.  "It's fun!" he said.  Then he looked at her with a questioning stare, saying,  "Do you fight?"  

            She thought back to all the battles that she had been in, and all the times she sparred with Ranma.  But no matter how much she trained, or fought, she just wasn't good enough.  Never even close to Ranma's level, much less any of the others.  He noticed her sad look as she crossed her hands on her lap.  "Yes Goten, I fight.  But I'm not very good, or very strong."  It was the hardest confession she had ever said aloud.  

            "Really?"  He said, looking at her with an intenseness that only little kids can give.  "I didn't think you were that weak compared to everyone else here."  She smiled at his compliment as she answered,  "Whom am I kidding?  I've been in lots of fights, and nearly every time someone has had to bail me out.  It would be nice to have the skill of Ranma, or the grace of Shampoo.  It would be ever better if I had power like yours.  But it's not to be."  She wiped a small tear from her eye as a loud crash is heard.  They both turned their attention to the battle.  Both father and son were panting, but they were still going at it.  "_Hmm, it's not every day that they really go at it.  Usually Ranma wins easily.  Maybe he's just training."_  Soun, for his part, had passed out from the earlier shock.

            She turned back to Goten and said, "How about a walk?  

            "Sure, lemme tell Trunks so he knows."  Without waiting for a reply he took off for the upstairs.  Akane stood up and smoothed the skirt on her dress and went to the door, slipping on her shoes as she got there.  He came right back down in less than a minute with his bo on his back.  Sliding to the door, he managed to stop himself before hitting the wall.  "Whoa…guess I got carried away hehehe."  She laughed with him at his antics as he slipped his boots on.  As soon as they were on they slipped out the door and into the quickly darkening streets.

****

**_A few miles away…_**__

_"For a moment I could sense their energy skyrocket."_  Thought Goku as he continued to walk the streets of Nerima.  He had managed to reach this dimension through some rift of some sorts, but when he traversed it, it drained him severely, to the point that he couldn't fly if he wanted to.  He was now too weak to do battle against a powerful enemy, although he was more than strong enough to handle any hoodlums that he could come into contact with.

            _"I wonder why they powered up though?  I don't sense any danger in their area.  Maybe they made some friends and were showing off?  Yea, that must be it, I can sense some weaker energy signatures near them."_  Goku inwardly shrugged, feeling his energy slowly recover as he walked.  As he continued on his journey, he looked around at his surroundings.  Square buildings filled almost every available space, and the streets were rather narrow, although he didn't see any cars around at all.  Vending machines dotted the area, as did several restaurants, some of which smelled really good right now.  "No, can't eat.  Besides, I don't think they would let me eat on credit heheh"  he chuckled, knowing that if they did, they'd probably be bankrupt on his stomach.  

He felt something hit his foot and clattered down the street.  Looking at it curiously, he saw that it was a tin can, although it now had a foot on top of it.  "Hmm?"  the warrior said as he looked at the small group.  Kids from the looks of them, maybe almost out of their teens.  There were five of them arranged in a loose horseshoe around him, all dressed in what appeared to be school uniforms of some sort or another.  Although none of them looked well groomed, and several of them looked quite seedy. 

He gazed at all of them from left to right.  A young blonde woman wearing slacks and blouse, with a nasty smirk and was using a nasty-looking knife to clean her fingernails was nearest him.  Next was a brown-haired, short boy, with a jacket over his shoulder.  The one with his foot over the can was obviously the leader.  He had a look of amusement, though there wasn't any joy in it.  He was taller than the others, and most likely older, with a fairly broad chest and thick arms, with one hand in a pocket.  His black hair fluttered in the breeze as he gazed at Goku.  Next to him was another young woman, this one slightly shorter than the other.  She would have been considered pretty, if her simmering glare would've cared to leave her face.  Her blouse was untucked from her slacks, and her long black hair hung down to her waist.  She held a pipe of some sorts in her hand.  Finally, he gazed at the last one.  He was also the most groomed of them, and the most nervous.  He had brown hair, and glasses over his rapidly shifting eyes.  

"Ahh…is there something I can do for you?"  Goku inquired.  There was some laughter from a couple in the group as they slowly surrounded him.

"Actually, there is."  The tall one said, crushing the can under his boot.  "You see, there's a toll to pass on this here street, and, unless I'm wrong, you haven't paid yet."  He sneered.

Goku scratched his head, thinking back, "Gee…I didn't see a toll sign anywhere.  Where was I supposed to pay?"  He looked up at the tall one, who was now gazing back in disbelief.  Goku continued, "Actually, I don't even have any money to pay anyways heheh."  This was the wrong thing to say to these people.

"Oh…no money eh?  Well, we have other forms of payment here."  The leader sneered again.  

"Oooh…you mean you guys use credit?"  The leader glowered at Goku's innocence.

"No you idiot!  We're going to beat the hell out of you!"  He motioned with his head to the girl with the knife.  A wicked grin crossed her face as she tossed the knife back and forth between her hands.  Goku, for his part, just looked at her blankly, saying, "Well that's not nice."  This got a laugh from all in the group, even the nervous kid.  

With a yell she came in charging, knife held forward and aimed for his heart.  Suddenly, she stopped moving, and she couldn't understand why at first.  Everyone else looked on in surprise as Goku held the knife blade between his first two fingers.  Try as she might, she couldn't move the knife.  The jacket kid came in then, wielding a bat.  He brought it down right on Goku's head, while he watched the girl struggle.  The bat broke in half.  The kid looked at the shattered half he held in shock, as Goku turned to look at him blankly.  "Is there something wrong?  You seem to have broken your bat." he asked, oblivious to the fact that his head was smacked by a METAL Louisville bat, and he didn't feel it.  Then again, he always did have a hard head.

Outraged, bat boy, the pipe girl, and the knife girl came in swinging for all they were worth.  With a speed they couldn't match, although it tired him a little, he blocked every punch, kick, and weapon used at him.  Goku smirked a little, then, moving just a little faster, slipped a tap against the boy, and two slaps against the girls between their blows.  All three were knocked backwards from the blows, and fell to the ground groaning.  Their leader was now outraged.  From his pocket he pulled a pistol, a 9mm Beretta, and aimed it at the orange clad fighter.  "That's it.  For that you DIE!"  he shouted, then pulled the trigger.  Goku watched the bullet approach, and with casual ease, he caught the bullet.  "You should be more careful, you could hurt someone with that." He said.  

"WHY YOU!!!"  He fired five more rounds at Goku, who caught them all.  In shock, he watched as the spiky haired figure simply squeezed his hand a little, and then opened it.  A small ball landed with the sound of lead on concrete.  With the knife still in his other hand, Goku quickly tosses it at the leader…or more correctly, at the pistol.  He flew back several feet, and fell to his back as he held the gun against his chest.  Sitting up, he looks at it, and in astonishment, he finds the knife was in the dead center of the barrel, jamming and ruining it completely.

With a growl, the leader stood up.  "You haven't seen the last of us!  We'll be back for our payment, and next time, it'll be doubled!"  He turns and quickly walks away into a sidestreet, his companions following.  The nervous kid looks at Goku in dismay, then quickly chased after them.  

Blinking slightly, Goku shrugs and continues on his way, leaving some astonished onlookers behind.  A couple stared at his emblemed back as he drifted away into the growing darkness.

****

Elsewhere… 

"Aww…lookit what you did to those poor kids, you big bully!"  Toltiir mocked as he watched Goku.  Then he smiled, thoroughly enjoying the chaos he had spread so far.  "Time for some more though."  With that, he turned his attention away.

****

Back in Nerima… 

"So tell me something Goten," Akane asked as they walked.  He smiled at her, waiting for the question.

"What's a 'Super Saiyan'?"  Gotens' face when blank as he thought for a moment.  

"I don't know.  I just know that that's what I am."  He replied, "I mean, I'm half-human, half-saiyan, so I guess that lets me have the powers of a saiyan, or something.  You'd have to ask my dad, or Trunks dad.  They'd know.  They're full saiyans."  They walked on a bit longer in silence.  Then all lights in all the buildings and street lamps went out.  Goten looked about, confused, while Akane simply groaned.

"Not another power failure!  Man, I'm sick of them!  And me without a flashlight."  True, without any lights, the whole area had become nearly pitch-black.  

"Don't worry Akane," Goten smiled, then held out his hand.  A small ball of light emerged, lighting up the area for several feet in its' golden glow.  The ball then rose until it was above their heads, keeping them well lit without blinding them.  "That's a neat trick, you'd have to show me how to do that sometime."  She smiled appreciatively.  

"Well, I would, but I don't think you have the power to do it."  He said honestly.  She bit back an angry retort, and instead asked, "What's it like?  To have that kind of power?"  She turned to face him fully, looking into his eyes in curiosity.  "I don't know. I've never really not had it.  It's just been there for me."  It wasn't the kind of answer she wanted, but it was all she was probably going to get.

"Hey, I got an idea!"  He held out his hand towards her.  Wary, she slowly took it, wondering what he was up too.  

Suddenly, she felt energy pour up her arm and into her body.  She felt it grow as Goten added more of his Super Saiyan power to her.  Her eyes were wide as he continued to give her energy.  _"Incredible!  I feel like I'm on fire all over!  Yet, it doesn't hurt at all…it actually feels great!  Amazing…is this what it's like for Ranma?"_  she thought to herself as she soaked up the energy.  Goten added it slowly, not wanting to burn her body out before she got to try out his idea.  If someone was to wonder by, they would have seen a young boy wearing a bo staff on his back with a teenage girl, holding her hand, lit up in the glow of a small ball above them.  Both of them were bathed in a soft white light that shimmered and wavered about them, as if they were smoking.  

After what seemed like an eternity, he finally stopped, and released her hand.  She kept it extended for a moment, not wanting to move.  She couldn't get over the feelings her body was giving her.  She could feel the power crackle within her, wanting release, yet, she didn't know why.  She looked at her hands, then back at Goten in wonderment.  He simply smiled as he said, "Ok, now bring out your energy.  I think you'll get the same feeling I get when I become a Super Saiyan.  You do know how to bring out your energy right?"  She didn't like the sound of that.

"Yes of course, but what do you mean, 'you think'?  Haven't you done this before?"  She asked, eyes narrowed, slightly upset.  He shook his head, yet kept smiling.  She rolled her eyes, thinking, "_Great, I'm his first.  Wonderful."_  

"Don't worry, as long as you do it slowly, you shouldn't burn out your body at all."  He said all too cheerfully as he waited.

"That's comforting…I think."  She muttered.  She was about to bring it out when a demented laugh was heard.  She spun around, and nearly spun herself dizzy from the speed that she moved at.  Goten had heard it too, and had faced the direction the sound came from.

A tiny old man was bounding towards them, carrying a large brown sack filled with lord knew what.  He saw the two, and instantly recognized Akane.  "AKANE!! MY SWEET CHILD!!"  He cried as he dropped the sack and jumped into the air, heading straight for her.  She knew what was coming, and she was instantly angry at what the old man had in mind.  Goten intercepted the man first though, holding him by the back of his shirt.  He clawed at the air, wondering why he wasn't moving forward anymore.  "What the…let go of me!  You should respect your elders boy!"  

Goten just stared quizzically as he asked, "Akane, who is this?  Do you know him?"

Akane glowered, feeling her body tensing up.  "Yes, unfortunately, I do.  This is Master Happosai, although I think he's only a master of PERVERSION!"  She stomped towards the old master, who was still struggling to free himself.  

"Let go of me kid!  You don't know who your dealing with!"  With that Happosai pulled out a round, lit bomb, yelling, "HAPPO FIRE BURST!!" and tossed it at Goten.  The small fighter merely batted it away high into the air, where it exploded.  He looked to Akane, who was getting madder by the minute as she remembered all that the old man had done.  While the old man's eyes googled at him, he asked Akane, "What do you want done with him?" 

"Just hold'em!"  With that, Akane pulled out her mallet, and with a mighty swing, whacked the old pervert into the sky.  "Nice arm!" Goten commented as she huffed, putting the mallet away.

"_Damn that old man!  I wish he'd never arrived here!"_  She felt her muscles tighten up as she kept remembering each past act of perversion the old man had done, each act of supposed 'training' he had put Ranma through.  It made her blood boil.  Then she remembered all the nasty things Ranma had said to her over the past year.  Goten looked at her, slightly concerned now.  She was powering up and didn't know it.  He watched as her short dark blue hair slowly stood on end, a couple locks over her brow, and her breathing quickened, fists held tightly.  Usually she could calm herself down after stopping Happosai, but the influx of energy into her system demanded release, and the old man had merely triggered a landslide.  

Goten continued to watch as she remembered all the humiliating times she'd been beaten by other fighters in all the numerous tournaments she had been in, how they had laughed at her, mocked her.  He watched as her arms gained some muscle tone and a little bulk, and her shoulders became slightly broader.  Her chest bulged slightly as the muscles soaked up the power and put it to use.  Her legs gained some bulk and tone as well as she kept powering up far faster than Goten would have thought safe.  The air around her was wavering, and her dress was fluttering slightly.

"_Uh oh…I hope I didn't fry her!  She's rather nice!"_  He stepped back a couple steps, hoping she didn't explode or something.  He'd made some dumb mistakes in the past, and he was hoping beyond hope that this wasn't one of them.  She gained a little height, and then, with a scream of pure outrage, she brought out the energy that Goten had given her, and her rage had fed.  The force of it tossed Goten all the way into a concrete wall, stunning him.  When he looked up, he blinked in astonishment at what happened to Akane.  She stood in a small crater, far smaller than the ones he and Trunks made earlier, bathed in the familier golden glow, her dress fluttering about her.  Her hair had taken on a slightly blond look, but wasn't the gold of a Super Saiyan, and her eyes had only gone to a lighter shade of blue, not cyan and pupil-less.  Her face was intent as her mind finally caught up with what had happened.  She looked at her bare arms, and saw the muscle tone and definition that wasn't there before.  Too, she also noticed the glow that surrounded her, and the little crater under her feet.

Goten finally walked up to her, awed beyond ability to speak.  _"She's the most beautiful thing I have ever seen!  Yet…she also scares the dickens out of me!"_  He remembered the first look on her face immeadiatly following the transformation.  It was a look of death to anyone who ever ticked her off.  Now though, her face was transfixed as she looked herself over in a store window.  

"_Wow…this is what it's like to be a Super Saiyan?  Incredible!"_  She looked at her body, and how much more powerful and built it was, especially around her chest and arms.  She looked at the small sleeves, and they were slightly tight around the biceps now, not loose.  She stretched herself a little, and felt how tight her clothing as a whole was.  _"Wow!  This must have changed my whole body!"_  She smiled in appreciation at the new look.  "_You know, I could get used to this, although I'm not sure I like the dirty blond hair look."_ She mused.

"Man, I'm sure glad you didn't blow up!  Ya had me worried there.  She turned to him, and smiled warmly.

"Thank you Goten.  You've made this day one of the happiest days ever."  She tested out her new abilites, and loved the feel of her arms and legs slicing the air with an audible sound.  Goten quickly got her attention though when he said, "It won't last you know."  She froze, and looked at him.

"What do you mean?"  

"Well, it's only a temporary energy exchange, and as soon as you use it up, it's gone.  And if you power up like that too much you'll lose it much faster.  Right now you're using my energy, but yours isn't strong enough to stay like this after you've used it up."  He said seriously.  "If you stay like this, you'll probably loose the energy within a few hours.  Right now, if you relax again, it might last you a few days.  I think."  He said, not totally sure.

She thought a moment, then picked up that her strength was slowly, but surely fading.  She smiled at Goten and grabbed his arm.  "Come on then!  I want to show everyone before I power back down.  This is too good for them to miss!"  and she took off in a dead run, far faster than any human had ever run before, leaving a golden trail behind, with Goten latterly flying behind her.

_"She'll use it up even faster if she has to run far!"_  He thought, looking perplexed while the darkened district of Nerima flew by sideways.

To be continued….


	6. Chapter 5: Another Saiyan?

DBZR ½ 

**_Chapter 5: Another Saiyan?  _**

Trees, dark lampposts, houses, dumpsters, vending machines, all of these things swept past Akane faster than she had ever even dreamed of them going past her as she ran towards the Tendo Dojo.  She had run on this street many times before when she went jogging, but not even at her fastest sprint had she ever gone this fast.  

She jumped up and caught a branch in a tree, and using the velocity from the run and catch, she launched herself and Goten towards a distant rooftop.  She quickly tucked in her legs until she was in the shape of a ball, Goten now forgotten in the moment.  She flipped, then landed on the rooftop with only the slightest of hits, and took off on another jump towards another distant rooftop.  The glow around her was intensifying, as her own energy started to mix with Goten's shared energy and became one.  Using only a single foot, she leapt from roof to roof, closing in on the Dojo with astonishing speed.

Goten was flying above her, watching as she continued her pace.  "Wow…she's doing a lot better than I thought she would.  Wish Dad were here, he'd know if my transfer idea was a good one or not."  He gazed at Akane's form as it gracefully hopped from roof to roof, enjoying the moment to the fullest.  Smirking, he took off towards the dojo, a blur marking the spot he was just at.  

Akane could finally see the lantern lights from the Dojo, and launched herself into the air, arms outstretched to the sides, legs straight back, her head held high as her now dirty-blondish hair fluttered.  As her momentum slowed, she started to drop down towards the inside of the Dojo walls.  Moving quickly, she tucked in again, and did several rolls before unfurling and landing on the balls of her feet.  A small crater had appeared when she landed, but she didn't feel it.  Breathing deeply, she released it with a flourish.  

"Wow Akane, that was some great stuff you pulled!"  She heard Goten's voice to her right.  She started, now realizing that she had forgotten completely about him!  When she looked over though, she saw a grin on his face; none the worse for wear from the jostling trip she just gave him, although she didn't know that he had flown there himself.  Everyone else in the Dojo simply stared at her.

_"What happened to Akane?_" Ranma thought, still in girl-form.  She had been fighting her father since before Akane left, and had still been at it when she felt a strong force approaching from above.  When she looked she saw a glowing being in a white and blue dress tucking and rolling.  Now that she saw Akane, and acknowledged that it was she, her jaw dropped.  "_She wasn't like this before she left!  How did she change like this?"_  Most everyone else's thoughts were along the same lines, except for Trunks.

He walked up to Goten and asked, "Hey…what's with her?  I didn't know she could transform."  Goten smiled in reply, "I gave her some of my energy."

Trunks stared wide-eyed at his friend.  "Goten…I always thought you could be kinda dumb, but now it's official!  That was incredibly stupid!"  

"Well…how…how come?"  Goten pouted, feelings hurt.

"Ahh…well,"  Trunks thought, realizing that he had no idea what to say now.  He thought long and hard, while Goten looked at him, still hurt.

"Well…you didn't know what would happen, that's why!"  Trunks finally said.

"I did so!  Sorta…" Goten amended.  Akane walked between them before something else could be said.  She kneeled, and grasped Goten by the shoulders, tears of joy in her now light-blue eyes.  

"Goten, I have to thank you."  She said, as she looked deep into Gotens' eyes. "You took a risk and tried it anyways, without knowing what would happen, just so I could know what it was like to have your power.  I may not keep it, but I'll cherish this moment."  And with that said, she leaned forward, and kissed Goten on the cheek.  Goten simply blushed, and scratched his head.

Most everyone, minus Trunks, was nearly knocked down by the gesture.  She was more tomboyish than this.  Ranma even felt a little jealousy, not that he…er…she would admit it at the time.  

Trunks blinked at everyone's reaction, then turned back to the two in controversy.  "So how did ya give her your energy?  I didn't know that you could do that."  

"All I did was transfer some of my energy from me to her.  It's temporary, and I think it'll be gone in a couple hours if she doesn't relax her energy.  If she does, it should last her awhile longer….I think."  Goten still wasn't certain about how long the transfer would last, but was willing to make a guess.

"Whaddya mean?  Transferred energy?"  Ranma asked, confused.  She hadn't heard of the idea of transferring energy to another person before.  She knew that every single being on Earth had an inner energy, also known as ki, and some were stronger than others.  The energy of a person becomes stronger and useable when someone is trained to find it and implement it.  It can make a person hit harder, move faster, and have better stamina than if they merely worked out, or ran a lot.  

"Well, she asked me what felt like to be a Super Saiyan.  To have a Super Saiyans' power that is."  Goten explained as everyone either looked at Goten, or at the still glowing Akane.  "I really didn't know how to explain it.  I've always just 'had' it.  So I came up with an idea to transfer some of my energy to her."

"And that brought about…this?"  Ranma gestured to Akane.

Goten nodded.  "Yea, I think so.  There was some weird guy though…." Akane interrupted with a snarl.

"It was Happosai.  He tried to jump on me when he saw me.  Goten caught him and I nailed him into the sky.  I was so angry with him…I don't know what came over me.  As I stood there I started to remember all that he had done…and then…other things that angered me.  Next thing I knew…this happened."  She gestured to herself.

Everyone just looked at her, not sure what to say.  Ranma spoke first.

"So…just how much stronger are you?"  Akane faced her and smirked.  "Care to find out Ranma?  Maybe I should relax a bit before I loose too much of Goten's energy."

Recovering her surprise at Akanes' reaction, Ranma smirked confidently, saying, "Nah, I wanna see what you can do now."  She took up a ready stance, left leg forward, right arm low and close to her body.  Akane put her right arm up with her hand in the shape of a blade, left arm low.  

The glow around Akane intensified, as she became intent, yet excited.  She wanted to know what she could do as well.  Ranma stared her down with an intent stare and a smirk.  Before anyone could say anything, she rushed Akane, and placed a hard punch to her solar plexus.  She quickly followed it up with a foot sweep, intending to end this quickly.  Akane, for her part, didn't even feel the hard punch, and saw the sweep coming.  She decided now to get to it.  She jumped high, throwing Ranma off when she didn't connect with Akane's legs.  Flipping over the still lowered Ranma, Akane quickly landed, turned, and charged the pig-tailed redhead.  Faster than Ranma expected, Akane planted a hard punch into the cursed martial artists' face, knocking her into the dirt.  The white and blue dress clad fighter started.  She didn't know she would move so fast.  _"Whoa…"_ was her only thought.

This was Ranmas' thought as well.  "_Wow…she's fast.  Lots faster than usual.  I didn't even see her move!  And her punch is several times harder than before."  _Ranma looked up at Akanes' startled face.  "_She wasn't holding back either.  Maybe this energy transfer thing has more benefits than I thought."_

She grunted as she lifted herself up from the dirt.  Brushing herself off, she squared off against her opponent.  "Round two, and this time, I won't hold back."  Akanes' eyes narrowed as she squared off.  _"Fine.  Then I won't either."_  

They rushed each other at the same time, red-hair contrasting with the golden glow.  Ranma got in the first attack, "KACHU TENSHIN AMAGURIKEN!"  Hundreds of high speed punches flew at Akane, who blocked some, others either missed, or connected.  She replied with several fast jabs and kicks.  Again, some were blocked, others missed, and a few connected.  Ranma grunted when a kick connected with her abdomen, knocking the wind out of her.  Quickly composing herself, she launched herself off of Akanes' foot, and countered with a sharp spin kick.  Akane pulled back, but the front of her skirt became torn from Ranma's heel.  "You jerk!"  She cried, becoming angry now.  The glow around her increased, as did her strength.  She launched herself at the pig-tailed fighter, tossing a clump a dirt and grass behind her.  Moving faster than before, she threw punch after punch and kick after kick at a now reeling Ranma.  "_Her movements are becoming sloppy now, just like usual.  But she's too fast for me to counter!  She throws more at me before I can exploit the holes in her defenses.  I have to end this soon, or she'll wear me out!"_  Ducking under an extended arm, Ranma slipped in and landed several punched at Akane…or thought she did.  Her hands only caught more of her dress, leaving more tears in it as Akane outmaneuvered Ranma's counterattack.  They both heard the tearing sound, and they quickly backed off, mostly to catch their breath.  

Akane looked herself over, and found several cuts and tears in her dress, with a long gash leading down her skirt, exposing a strong looking leg from the knee down.  Ranma looked herself over and found that Akane had gotten in more hits than she though.  There were a few bruises on her arms, and her stomach felt like a steel rod had hit her.  Her legs arched a bit, and her clothing was as torn, if not a bit more so, than Akanes'.  

"Oh my!"  Kasumi said, amazed at the fight.

"Wow…she's giving Ranma trouble."  Nibiki said aloud, "_Not sure who I should bet on though…_" she thought to herself.

"This is some incredible fighting!  They move too fast for my eyes to follow!"  This from Genma, now back in human form, and who was watching the fight closely.  Soun Tendo grunted and nodded, tears flowing down his face.  "I'm so proud of my little Akane!"  Genma glared at Soun, who kept going on, "Why, if we had known sooner, we would have done this a long time ago!"  

"How could we?  Goten and Trunks arrived here only today."  Nibiki pointed out.  Soun chuckled, embarrassed.

Trunks turned to Goten, saying, "Hey, Ranma's not bad at all."

"Yea…Akane's pretty good too."  Trunks nodded.

"She's not bad, but she's getting sloppy.  She's lucky that the other girl hasn't been able to counter yet." A new voice mused.  Everyone, including Akane and Ranma, turned to the new voice.  A dark form walked into the light of a lantern, exposing blue boots and orange legs first.

"DADDY!"  Goten cried, rushing the still mostly hidden stranger.  He jumped up and tackled the man, knocking him to the ground.  In the lantern light, his features could be plainly seen now.  He looked like an older version of Goten, with a grin and a laugh on his lips.  

"Hey you made it!  You're here to take us to Mom?"  Trunks said, smiling.  The smile on Goku's lips faded, and he looked at Trunks with a blank look on his face.  

"Bulma?  She's not here.  I barely managed to make it to this dimension myself."  He continued on, even though Trunks looked crestfallen.  "Right now, I'm too weak to even get back by myself."  Everyone's hopes dimmed a bit.

Goku picked up on this, and said, "Don't worry, within a day or so I should be back up to full strength."  Trunks raised an eyebrow.

"Uh, sir…" Trunks reverted to when he had trained with Goku.

"What is it Trunks?" 

"Why is it going to take you a day to recover?  You're the strongest guy here."  The Nerima locals gazed at Goten's father with a new look of awe.  "_He's stronger than them??  How much stronger can a person be!?!?"_  Ranma thought to herself.

"Well, it's because that, compared to the last time I passed through a dimension to another, there wasn't any interference.  It took a lot of my strength just to even pick up on you here.  I lost more when I used the Transmission technique to get me here.  There seemed to be something in the middle that managed to siphon off a bit more in the process.  I'm not strong enough to fight someone who's powerful, but other than that, I'm fine."

Nabiki tried to get Gokus attention, but he was distracted by the happy Goten.  Finally, frustrated, she yelled, "GOTEN'S DAD!!"  

He looked up with a blank look.  "Hmm?"

"If you don't mind me asking, what's your name?  We can't just go around calling you 'Goten's Dad' all the time."  Nibiki said, leaning against a wooden pillar.

"Oh, yea, I guess you're right."  He laughed.  "My name's Goku."  He held out a hand to her.  She took it, and noticed how gentle he was when he shook her hand.  "Nabiki."

Introductions followed quickly, while Akane and Ranma still stood off from each other.  _"I'd wish they'd hurry up.  I wanna see if I can beat her now!"_  Ranma thought, waiting impatiently.  Akanes' thoughts where along the same lines.  _"Common…I'm actually winning!"_

Goku stood up, and walked towards the two combatants.  The looked up at him, curious.  He turned to Akane and asked, "I thought I felt Goten in two places.  You're using some of his energy aren't you?"  She nodded.  "I see, I guess I should have known.  For a moment I thought I had lost my mind hahaha!"  Everyone but the two boys looked at him strangely.  He quickly became semi-serious again, and this time looked at Ranma.  

"You're pretty strong too, although you don't need to bring out your energy.  You've got some excellent skills!"  He walked a little further until he stood between the two.  What he said next surprised everyone, including the two boys, although for different reasons. 

"Attack me.  Use everything you have when you do it."  He stood, relaxed, between the two.

"Huh?"  Akane looked at him incredulously.

"What?"  Ranma said, also incredulous.  

"Consider it a test.  I noticed something earlier and I wanted to see it again up close."  

"Ah…Dad?"  Goten called.  

"What is it son?"  He replied.

"Are you sure you want to do that?  I mean…won't you…hurt them?"  If golden eggs were splattered all around the area and kept falling in a downpour, it wouldn't have equaled the surprise that the three newcomers felt.  

"No way.  I'll be fine son."  Goku said with a smile.

"Alright then.  Here goes!"  Akane came at Goku with a rush of air past her dirty-blondish bangs.  Ranma also launched himself at Goku a moment later, his eyes locked on the Saiyans' gut.  Akane quickly flipped and came at the orange-clad fighters head, heel extended.  Both martial artists passed through the Saiyans' after-image, and landed in a heap.  As the turned around, they saw Goku back where he was, sweating profusely.  "Heh…well, guess that leaves out any special tricks."

"I'll show you tricks! KACHI TENSHIN AMAGURIKEN!"  Ranma lashed out with his best Chestnut Fist attack, actually hitting Goku most of the time.  He looked at the pig-tailed girl in surprise.  Before he could do anything else, Akane landed a hard punch to his kidneys, following up with a hard kick to his head.  He didn't budge.  Both fighters looked at Goku in surprise.  _"I put everything into that Chestnut Fist attack!  Did it hurt him?"_  Ranma still held a fist against Goku's chest.  _"I used everything in both attacks!  What's this guy made of?"_  Akane thought as she flipped backwards.  

Goku laughed.  "Common…I know you guys can do better than that!  I saw you really going at it a minute ago!"  He looked serious again.  "You're both holding too much back.  Dig deeper."

"You want all out?"  Ranma ground out, annoyed.  "I'll give you all out!  MOKO TAKA BISHA!"  She fired a blue energy blast at Goku, who merely batted it into the air to explode harmlessly.  Akane leapt over Ranma's still crouched form, and landed a hard kick to Goku's face.  She continued attacking, using everything she had, and then some.  "I'll beat you yet even if I lose all of the energy!"  Goku merely looked at her as her hits bounced off.  

"Not at that rate.  I know there's more there, but you're not using it."  This infuriated Akane, who thought she was using everything she had.  Her rage was returning, and with it, the fuel for the combined energies inside her.  She leapt backwards as Ranma made an attempt.  She was angry now, as angry as when she first brought out her energy.  The glow around her was intense, and her hair now stood straight up.  The blue had returned, but was still streaked with blond.  Ranma nailed Goku in the face, then flipped over him to land near the others, who stood transfixed.  

"_Man…I don't have anything else against this guy.  He's too much, and he hasn't even struck back!"_  Ranma stood by while Akane attacked again.

Air swished as her bladed hands cut the air, now missing Goku more than hitting.  Her strength was depleting, but she didn't care.  She was too angry to stop.  Goku frowned, then finally made a move.  Moving faster than she could, he landed a light punch into her gut, then, his hand also a blade, he made to swipe her in the face.  She barely saw it coming and jumped to avoid it.  Another tear formed in her now ruined dress, going across her left shoulder, exposing the musculature that was there now.  She landed some ways away, huffing.  Goku looked at her sternly. 

"I know there's more to you than that.  I felt it earlier.  You're holding back, but you don't see it.  Goten's energy gave you the means to finally bring out your strength, but you're failing to tap it."  Ranma had no idea what he was getting at, but he had noticed that she wasn't going at Goku like she did her.  "_Maybe he's on to something?_"  

"YOU WANT EVERYTHING!  THEN HERE IT COMES!" Leaping at Goku, she pulled her mallet out and headed right for him.  With a loud cry, she heaved it over her head, and with all her strength started to bring it down.  

"HiyaaaAAAHH!!"  Goku launched a golden energy blast at the head of the mallet, holding the mallet in place from coming down any further.  Yet, it didn't push it away either.  He kept pouring energy into the blast, energy he didn't have to spare, and she kept pushing, also with energy she didn't have to spare.  It was a contest of wills, and the strongest one would win.

Finally, she let up, and the mallet flew from her hands and landed with a loud sound of wood in water as it landed in the pond.  She collapsed onto the ground, and her hair finally landed back in its usual mop shape, although blond streaks were still in it.  The glow dissipated as she finally relaxed, conserving what little energy she had left.  Goku still stood, panting hard from the exertion, sweat pouring down his brow.  He staggered over to her where she sat panting, and extended a hand.  She looked at it, then at him.  He smiled warmly, and she smiled in kind, taking the hand.  

"You're stronger than you think Akane.  You had already managed to rebuild some of the energy Goten gave you with your own.  It was that energy that you were fighting with, not Gotens'."  He looked deep into her eyes.  "That was why I was testing you.  I wanted to see how far you would go before stopping.  You stopped at the right time, and I think you'll be able to recover a good portion of Goten's energy on your own."

She blinked, not totally understanding.  Neither did anyone else for that matter, least of all Trunks and Goten, who where scratching their heads in unison.  "What's he talking about Goten?"

"I dunno."

Ranma walked up to Goku, and asked, "And what where you testing me for?"

He looked at her with a knowing smile.  "I was testing you to see how skillful you really were.  You're very good.  Maybe you can teach me some of your techniques?"  She blinked in surprise.  

"Uh…sure.  I can do that."  

"Great!  Maybe tomorrow, we'll do some training!"  Goku said, looking forward to learning new techniques.  

Kasumi had gone in the house earlier to check on the dinner she had been cooking on the propane-powered cooking stove.  She returned at this moment to announce, "Dinner's ready!  You three are welcome to join us!"

"ALRIGHT!"  Goku nearly plowed everyone over, including Kasumi in his haste to the food.

To be continued….


	7. Chapter 6: Fusion? Ranma, meet Gotenks

**_*Authors note:_** This chapter came to me in a rush **author laughs**, something that happens frequently with my writings. Actually I had an idea with this chapter when I was still writing the last one, but I've now gone in a totally different direction. It's what I get for listening to Linkin Park, Metallica, and a bunch of other pulse-pounding songs heh.

_BTW, be forewarned, you readers will get a surprise later on in this chapter. Don't be offended, I'm just taking a little creative license, so please don't take it personal. It's not meant to be._

_Again, thanks for reading and reviewing. It's giving me more motivation to continue this story compared to my others. Also, based on some of your reviews, I go back and revise past chapters, at least until the story is complete. So go back and read the other chapters, there might be something in there now that you missed before. I've also noticed that MS Word puts way too much coding in its web pages, making the page look all wrong. So I'll have to redo the other chapters so as to give you the correct look._

_Now, ON TO THE STORY!_

**_¤§¤  
RBL_M1A2Tanker_**

**_DBZR ½_**__

**Chapter 6: Fusion? Ranma, meet Gotenks.**

**_In Gokus' dimension…_**

"Gohan?"

"Yes Videl?"

"Is there something wrong? I thought you were upset when I left home to see you." 

Gohan, Gokus' oldest son, was sitting in a green field, alongside Videl, his girlfriend. Videl is the daughter of Hercule Satan, the self-proclaimed savior of the world from Cell. She stood at about 5'3, and was petite in every sense of the word. Her figure was shaped much like the hourglass effect many desire, yet few attained, as they lacked the inclination to put themselves through the constant working out that it requires. She on the other hand worked out constantly, always honing her martial art skills she learned from her father, and the other skills she had learned from Gohan himself, bringing out her energy and pushing herself to the limits. Compared to the other Z-fighters, she didn't compare well, but to the average human, she was stronger than most. She was dressed in a dark blue oversized T-shirt, the word FIGHT in bold red lettering on the front, and sweatpants and running shoes. He was in his dark-blue fighting outfit, showing off a considerable amount of his highly-toned chest.

They were both sitting in a green field under the moon and stars after Chichi had allowed Gohan to go see her. At the same time Videl had asked Hercule if she could see him, and while Mr. Satan didn't approve, there really wasn't too much he could do to stop her, and they both knew it. They had met each other halfway in between their destinations, and decided that where they were was as good enough a place to enjoy each other's company. Most couples would have taken advantage of the scenic, and rather out-of-the-way location, but neither one of them had that in mind. 

Videl could feel the distress in him, and reached out to massage his shoulders. Not that it made a difference, his shoulders were too hard for her small hands to really do much of anything, but it was the attempt that counted. He wanly smiled to her, saying, "It's my brother. Dad said that he wasn't on Earth anymore. Trunks too." She froze, shocked. She had seen a lot since she met Gohan, and knew that if they couldn't feel a person by their energy, then there was a good chance they weren't alive. 

"And now Dad's gone too. He went to look for them earlier and we haven't heard from him. It's got me worried." Gohan placed his arms on his knees, and leaned forward on them, while she looked at him, worried.

She brightened, "I wouldn't worry too much Gohan. You didn't sense a fight did you?" She shuffled over to sit beside his legs and looked him in the eyes. He pondered, then shook his head. 

"Then they can't be dead now can they? If they were really in trouble, I'm sure your Dad would have gotten them out of it. Maybe they're just exploring?" It was grasping at straws, and they both knew it, but, again, it was the attempt that counted. He smiled again, saying, "Yea, I guess so. Well, let's talk about something else, k? Won't do us any good to worry about it too much."

"Sure." She leaned against his propped up legs, looking at him warmly. "Gohan, I've been meaning to ask you something."

"Sure Videl, what is it?" He blinked, curious. She tilted her head till it touched his hand, and asked, "Could you tell me about Saiyans? I mean, I know that you're a Super Saiyan, but I really don't know much about them."

"Really? I thought Krillian filled you in?" She shook her head, replying, "No, he said that he figured you'd tell me, giving me that smug look of his. Said something about having the hots for you. I didn't catch it all." Gohan blushed, guessing as to what Krillian said, knowing that's how Krillian would act.

"Well, guess now is as good a time as any." He told her what he knew. He told her about how Saiyans were a powerful race of warriors from the Planet Vegeta, about their ability to gain strength from fighting. She listened in horror as he told her about how Frieza had destroyed Planet Vegeta out of fear of their power, leaving only the few cast offs on other planets to remain alive. He explained about the myth of the Super Saiyan, and how Goku was the first one in over 3,000 years, and how he had defeated Frieza. 

"Maybe there are more Saiyans out there, but, so far, there's only the two full-blooded saiyans left that we know of, my Dad and Vegeta. Then there's Goten, and Trunks and I who carry the Saiyan bloodline. But the Saiyan race is a dying race. After a few generations, there probably won't be a trace of them." He finished.

"That's horrible. What a terrible thing to have to have in the back of your mind." She shuddered. He smiled as he caressed her head, feeling the soft hair rustle under his hand.

"Don't worry. What is is. It's not like we could change it." She nodded, still not really liking it. She looked up, and deep into his eyes.

"I wouldn't mind being a Saiyan. I wouldn't mind being anything, just so long as I was with you." She leaned forward and lightly kissed him on the lips, then on the nose, just to tease him. He laughed as he said, "Same here Videl. I just hope I can handle being with you." He teased, even though her face darkened.

"Oh yea? Let's see you handle this!" In a surprising move, she tackled him, sat on his stomach and proceeded to tickle him senseless. Their worries were obviously far away, when something quickly brought worry back into their minds.

"AHH!" Videl cried out, her body ranked by pain. Gohan quickly blinked, wondering if maybe he had hit her. Her head was against her chest, and her fingers pressed hard into his. Her whole body was stiff, and she continued to grunt from pain. 

"Videl? What's wrong?" He asked, but all he got for an answer was a shake of the head. 

"I….I don't…." she ground out, then cried out again as she fell against him. _"What's wrong with me? My whole body feels like it's being torn apart!"_ He held her, and felt the muscles rippling underneath her clothing and skin. He sat up, and just held her, hoping that whatever it was would pass soon. "I'm going to get you out of here Videl!" He made ready to launch into the air and towards the nearest hospital, but she ground out strongly, "NO!" So he kept holding her, feeling her body get harder. Suddenly, she cried out louder than before, and just above the curve of her bottom, a lump started to form. It increased, not in size, but in length. A small tear formed, and some brown hairs poked through. 

Gohan started, now frozen in shock. _"No…this can't be possible! Is she becoming a Saiyan? How can this be?!"_ He thought as the hole grew, and in short order, a tail made its appearance in full, wriggling madly about. Her cries subsided, and her breathing less labored as the pain finally went away. In its place, she felt even better than before, or stronger. She wasn't certain which, but compared to the pain she had just felt, anything was better. She extricated herself from Gohans' arms, and stood up, albeit shakily at first. He looked at her in wonder. Her eyes were no longer blue, they were the same pupil-less black as his, Goku's, Vegeta's, and Goten's. Her bare arms had acquired some bulk, and a lot of tone. But the most shocking part of it all, was the tail, something that she wasn't ready for when it swung around in front of her.

"AHHH!! WHAT THE HELL HAS HAPPENED TO ME!!!" She screamed. Gohan quickly stood up, and explained, "Videl, I don't know what caused this, but it looks like you're a Saiyan now!"

"I DON'T CARE ABOUT THAT! WHAT'S THIS!!!" She pulled on the tail, nearly making herself pass out. 

"Ahh…that's a tail." He offered, weakly chuckling.

"WELL NO SHIT! WHY DO I HAVE ONE?!" She screamed again.

_"Wow…she's really taking this hard, she almost never swears!"_ He thought, and proceeded to reply to her question, "Well, all Saiyans have a tail. They are actually more powerful with it than without it. I used to have one. So did Dad and Vegeta." Something nagged at the back of his mind, but her antics had driven it a little further back than he could quickly remember it.

She breathed in and out slowly several times, making sure she was finally calm before doing anything else. Then a thought, and she asked, "Wait…why don't you have one now?"

"Well, we had to get them cut off for everyone's safety. Which reminds me," The nagging thing in the back of his mind was remembered. "what ever you do, don't look at the moon."

"Why?"

"It would be very bad." 

She cocked an eyebrow at him, but followed up on the impulse that all people have when told NOT to do something…she turned and looked right up at the moon. Gohan freaked, "VIDEL!!! I told you not to do that!!! DAMN!" She turned back around, new tail wagging, and looked at him, more confused than before. "What are you talking about? I still don't understand." 

Gohan blinked, than took in a small breath, hoping that…maybe, she didn't look long enough. He looked into her pretty pink eyes and thought…

_"Pink? Oh man…"_ He thought as he watched his girlfriend begin the first basic transformation of a Saiyan. 

_"What…I feel…strrange."_ Her blood was boiling, her heart pounding hard. Her fangs started to become sharp, and she could feel her body grow in size. 

Gohan, while knowing what he HAD to do, could only watch in horror as the transformation commenced in earnest.

"GooohaarrrrrrrRR" She managed to get out before she lost herself to the change. He watched as her clothing became highly taunt, then began to tear as her body contined to grow. A Saiyan warrior would have been outfitted with an elastic type body armor that would have also conformed to whatever size that the body changed too, but Videl didn't have that. In mere moments, she stood before her boyfriend naked…if you didn't count the mass of rapidly growing fur covering her from head to toe. Her face became elongated, and her ears pointed. Her eyes glowed redly, and her teeth were sharp as razors. Her mass blotted out the moon overhead as she towered over him. She roared into the night sky, and pounded her chest. Arms high over her head, she opened her massive mouth and an energy blast shot out to hit a distant mountain. She started to stomp about, causing Gohan to regain his senses and dodge clear.

_"Oh man…this is not the way I wanted to end my day with."_ It had been many years since he had fought Vegeta in his ape form, but things had changed since then. His mind back into action, he quickly changed to the other form a Saiyan could turn into. A golden glow filled the night sky around him as he changed into a Super Saiyan. Videl saw this, and turned towards it, instantly distrustful and ready to destroy whatever it was.

_"I'll have to be quick, before she does any more damage."_ He mapped out his avenue of attack as she stomped towards him. His cyan eyes hard, he disappeared out of her view. She froze, and looked around for him. Behind her, he formed an energy blade with his left hand. He grabbed her tail with the right, freezing her in place, and slashed downward with the blade of his other hand. Her roar increased in strength as he cut the tail off cleanly. Her power draining, she quickly started to return to her normal state. Her bulky body started to regain its hourglass shape, her face retracted, and her now white eyes closed. The fur receded, first leaving a prickly covering, then smooth skin as her body shrank back to its normal size. She collapsed, naked and unconscious. 

He quickly powered back down, and rushed to her side. _ "Man, I may have wanted to see her naked, but this wasn't how I would have gone about it."_ He quickly removed the top portion of his outfit, and wrapped it around her body, blushing as he did so. He picked her up and took off for his home, all the while thinking, _"What caused this to happen? Why?"_

***  


**_Elsewhere…_**

"Why? Because she said she wouldn't mind that's why!" Pathetic, childish laughter once again filled the halls of Toltiir's dwelling as he watched Gohan rushing to his home in his watching pool. It was made much the same as Kamis', now Dendes', magical pool, yet different in one important regard; Dendes' looked upon Earth and at anything on Earth that he requested to look at. Toltiirs' looked upon other dimensions and planets, and anything that he so wished to look at in or on those dimensions and planets. It also allowed him to see into people's minds, and to hear their conversations. It was his favorite tool for creating mischief, and he used it to the fullest.

Wiping a tear away after remembering Gohans' shocked expression during his woman's first transformation, he looked in on Goku.

"I see. Enjoying your meal are you?" He scowled suddenly, "Be glad that you are in one of the few worlds I can't enter! Otherwise I'd enjoy tormenting you and Ranma's friends. Oh yes yes, I soooo would enjoy that." His malice forgotten, he called forth a servant. The food he saw being devoured reminded him that he was hungry as well.

The servant quickly brought forth a large plate, covered with fruits, many of them exotic and from other dimensions. He picked up a jakabarune fruit, and peeled away the skin. Deadly to each with the skin, the fruit itself would be a delicacy on any planet, WAS a delicacy on the planet it originally came from as a matter of fact. He found it after giving the farmer his wish to see his dead parents…from inside the grave itself. He couldn't let the groves go to waste now could he? The fruit itself ripened only in complete darkness, although it required sunlight just like most any other plant. Once it ripened, the sun of the next day would harden the skin, leaving a deadly toxin on the outside, and the purest soft pulp on the inside. 

He took of bite, and found the taste to be off. He spit it out, and grabbed the servant, the tray falling to the floor and spilling its contents about. "What did you do? Play with this fruit? It tastes like it's been left in the fridge for three hours!! Do you know what happens to jakabarune fruit when it has been cold for too long?"

"N-no sire! I'm new! I didn't know!" The servant quivered.

"Consider this your introduction then to the staff, and your dismissal!" With that, Toltiir delved into the man's mind, finding his most fervent wish, and granting it. The servant felt his whole body get hot, and he screamed. His face became a dark maroon red, and steam started to pour forth from his body. Within moments, the servant became nothing more than steam, leaving nothing of his presence behind. 

"What a weak wish, to be as free and relaxed as steam. I mean honestly, what do I pay you people for? Why can't they wish to be something useful, like…a harem woman or something." He spat in contempt, and snapped his finger for another, better-trained servant, all the while listening to Shania Twains, _I Feel Like a Woman_ song from hidden speakers. 

Toltiir turned to the sky, looking directly at _(insert your name here ____)_,crying out, "HEY!! I'm a god of mischief! I can listen whatever I please! You have a problem with it, then I'll deal with your wishes later." He turned back to the confused servant, not sure whom his master was talking to, and not knowing that multitudes of people had access to Toltiir's inner chambers. Toltiir did though, and didn't care. He said, "Pay no attention servant. FEED ME!"

**  


**_In the Tendo Dojo…_**

The Tendo family, Ranma and Genma watched as Goku, Goten and Trunks pack away more food than Ranma ever could. Kasumi had to crank up the propane stove twenty times to fix up more rice as Goku ate the two kids into the ground. As disgusting and amazing a site as this was, the site of Akane eating as much as Ranma did was at least, a partial shock. Partial at least in comparision to seeing her as a glowing being. 

Finally, Goku breathed a huge sigh of satisfaction, "Wow! That was great! Your cooking is awesome Kasumi!" Kasami blushed, not used to getting compliments. "You're welcome Goku-san."

"Please, it's just Goku." He smiled warmly, much like how he smiled to everyone whom he was friends with. He yawned a bit, tired from his ordeal, and from the fight he had with Akane and Ranma. _"Akane has so much potential, even if she does lack skill. She's on the verge now of tapping a stronger source of energy. Maybe with some training, she'll be able to tap it."_ He mused as he looked at Akane, her blue hair still streaked with blond, as she smiled contentedly. He then took in Ranmas' shapely form, also content. Both girls looked worse for wear, but they were rather happy with life it seemed, even if they had just fought a being far beyond them in terms of power.

_"Ranma defiantly has skill. She's a superb fighter. I don't think Majin Buu was as skilled. Even without bringing out her energy, she's as strong as Akane is powered up. It's like they were in synch when they fought."_ He replayed the fight in his mind, watching how they flowed around each other's defenses and attacks. _"After Ranma had torn part of Akanes' dress though, the synch was off. Her concentration and focus was lost, she was too busy trying to pound her, not beat her. An awesome fight still." _

He spoke up, "Ranma, I almost forgot to ask you something."

"Ok, what is it?" Ranma said, not scornfully, just without thinking. She clamped her hands over her mouth, then, sheepishly, tried again. "I'm sorry Goku. What was it you wanted to ask me?"

Goku ignored the accidental slight, seeing it for what it was. "Well, remember I had asked you to teach me some of your skills?" She nodded. "I almost forgot to ask you if there was something you wanted to learn from me. It could be a couple days before I'm ready to make the attempt back to our world, so I have time to learn, and to teach." She put a finger to her mouth, thinking. 

Finally, she said, "I don't know. I guess I'd have to wait and see what all you can do first before I can ask you to teach me something." Goku nodded. 

"Yea, I guess you're right. We can think of something tomorrow." 

"Hey Dad?" Goku turned to his son.

"What is it Goten?"

"Nabiki said she'd show us around town tomorrow, and maybe get a couple things we could take with us back home. Can we PLEEEEEASE?" He looked at Goku with large puppy-dog eyes. Goku could destroy planets, galaxies, even an entire universe if he so felt inclined. He could fight and defeat anything he put his mind to, but he could never defeat the Puppy-dog eye attack. Then again, Goku was probably the biggest user of it, and he did it without knowing it. He smiled as he replied, "Sure son. Just keep out of trouble ok? Also, if I need you guys for a training idea, I'll come get you, ok?" 

"YAY!! We're going exploring!!" Trunks rolled his eyes at Goten's antics, saying to Goku, "Ok. Sounds like a plan." 

Goku yawned again, harder, causing everyone else to catch the yawn and repeat it. He stood up and stretched, already feeling lots better after eating. "Well, it's getting late. We should get some sleep before we begin training tomorrow."

Everyone else stood up, and they bid goodnight to Goku and the boys as they lead Goku to their room. Everyone basically scattered at that point. Kasami cleared dishes, although they couldn't be cleaned until power returned. Ranma headed for the showers, a hot kettle in her hands, Akane following just long enough to get a small pail of water and a washcloth to clean herself up in her room. 

Akane slid the door shut in her room, and placed the pail on the floor next to her bed. She stepped over to the mirror and looked herself over. "What a mess!" She exclaimed. Indeed, she was a mess. Her hair was disheveled from her power-up, and her face was dirtied. Her dress though, looked the worse. Stained severely from dirt and grass stains, and torn in hundreds of places. A gash went across her left shoulder, jagged along the edges from where Goku's hand had torn it. A long tear formed above her right knee, and widened as it went further down. From the knee down she could see her leg easily. It used to be one of her favorite dresses. In anger, mostly at herself for letting herself jump into a fight without changing, she grasped her dress at the stomach, and pulled hard. It came free with ease, buttons popping, cloth tearing loudly. What she saw floored her though.

In the mirror, she saw all the effects that Goten's energy transfer had done to her body. Her abs were highly pronounced, with definition lines around each ab muscle. Her legs were just as defined, and had more bulk than before. Her shoulders and deltoids had more mass, and flared a bit as she brought her arms across her chest. Her chest itself had also gained some mass, which she now noticed. Her breathing was constricted, her bra too tight now. She reached back and undid the clasp. Upon releasing the clasp, she instantly could breath easier, and she took in several deep breaths. She removed it and her other undergarments, and examined herself in detail, turning this way and that in the mirror, even flexing a little here and there.

_"Wow…I…look…incredible!" _ Was her only thought. Highly impressed would be doing her thoughts a disservice. Finished looking herself over, she put the ruined dress in the trash bin, and then proceeded to clean herself off. 

**_Next morning…_**

The dawn was just barely starting to rise in the distant horizon. It was Saturday, and everyone everywhere would, for the most part, be sleeping in, catching up on the sleep they lost during the workday. But in the Tendo Dojo…

"RISE AND SHINE RANMA!" A call from the yard is heard as Goku, Goten and Trunks went through their stretching exercises. A figure could be seen in an upper story window, then disappear. Another figure in another window is seen, and vanishes as well. From the porch doorway, a larger figure steps into the slowly brightening morning. Genma smiles, memories of many a training days beginning at the crack of dawn passing through his mind. 

"Morning Genma! Have you seen Ranma?" Goku asked, upside down. He was doing a few headstand pushups to warm up a bit. "I feel tons better, but I'm still not quite there. Shouldn't be too long though." He thought as a slender figure appeared from the house. A young man, with dark hair, in a red sleeveless shirt and loose pants walked out. His hair was in a pig-tail, much like Ranma's had been in. Before Goku could inquire, Goten called out, "Morning Ranma!" Goku looked at his son quizzically, wondering if maybe Goten had hit his head. _ "Even I know the difference between a man and a woman…hope he isn't coming down with something." _ He turned back to the young man.

Pushing up hard with his hands, he quickly righted himself and landed on his feet. Akane, in white training garb, with a red sash quickly walked out, looking much better. 

Goku looked around, then asked, "Ahh…where's Ranma? I thought she was going to do some training?" Without a word Akane shoved the young man towards the pond. He tried to catch his balance, but flailed madly as he dove in. In an instant a red-haired figure jumped back out, landing with a pronounced bouncing in certain areas near Akane.

"WHY DID YOU DO THAT FOR!!!" She cried, highly annoyed. Power still hadn't been brought back up, so hot water would be a long time in coming. 

"Because he didn't know that's why! Stupid jerk, how else could it be explained to him?" Akane hotly retorted. 

"Well you didn't have to shove me so hard!" Ranma glared, then turned to Goku, who merely stood impassively.

"You wouldn't mind waiting a moment while we stretch would ya Goku?" She said, resigned to her cursed form. No response. Ranma approached, saying, "Goku? Goku?"

Goku still stood, looking straight ahead, unblinking. Ranma reached out and poked him. Still nothing. She waved a hand in front of his eyes…a single blink. 

"Great. See what you did Akane?" 

"Me? You're the one who fell into that cursed pool!" 

"Yea, well, now we can't train until he comes out of it." 

In a weak voice, Goku finally said, "I…shoulda known." Everyone turned towards them. "I should have guessed by his….er…her energy. It feels exactly the same, but it's weaker. That's what threw me off." Finally regained of his senses, he answered Ranmas question, all the while shrugging off as best he could what he just saw. "Nah, go ahead. We've already stretched out, so we'll go through some of our routines while you stretch."

"Ok." With that, Genma, Ranma, and Akane started stretching, while the other three began their routines. Ranma watched all three very closely, paying close attention to their movements. It would be useful for her to know their style so she could teach them some of her techniques. 

Goten and Trunks immediately started to spar, punches and kicks flying at each other at a high rate of speed. They split apart, Goten taking up a fighting stance. His hands were in the shape of claws, on arm low and behind, the other took a ready position in front of his head. Trunks posture was much different, his hands fists, and his arms in front of his body, much like a boxers. They sized each other up, then went at it again, their hits loud and audible. _ "Wow…if that's just them going through a routine, it's pretty intense. I wonder what they are like when they are really going at it?"_ She continued stretching, watching Goku now.

Goku stood for a few minutes, eyes closed, concentrating. His arms were low, fists unclenched. Finally, he opened his eyes, gazing out at nothing in particular, eyebrows knit in concentration. 

"HAAA AH!" One of his arms shot forward, slightly cupped. The displaced air shoved into Goten, who had jumped. While it caught him off guard, he used it to flip over Trunks and continued to attack. Goku kept punching the air at imaginary foes, blocking and kicking in complex moves. He stopped briefly, relaxing his stance again. Then he took up the stance taught to him by King Kai, legs spread wider than shoulder width. He bent down low, hands also clawed, parallel to the shoulders. One leg he kept straight, the other he bent at the knee, giving the appearance of crouching. _ "Interesting stance…it protects and allows for quick offense at the same time. It wouldn't be impossible to fight around it, but it would be difficult."_ Ranma analyzed. 

Suddenly, Goku launched himself forward, twisting his body about so that his right arm was drawn back, left leg straight back. He rushed straight for a wall low to the ground, only to change his momentum by shooting his left arm out and grabbing the dirt. This action flipped him, and, using his forward velocity, he let his feet hit the wall first. He launched himself again, this time high into the air, leaving a small indent in the wall. Up high he performed many different moves. Spin kicks, upper cuts, jabs, flips, rolls, everything and anything he could think of. Ranma and the others, minus the boys, watched, their stretching either done or forgotten. _"His style is very offensively oriented, at least, I think so. He might be as good defensively, but if this is a sample of his style, it would be very hard indeed to fight against him. Not impossible, but very hard."_

Akane looked up at Goku, enthralled. "Wow…he's good." She said. Genma merely grunted an affirm. "I still think I can beat him." Akane and Genma both suddenly looked in amazement at Ranma, who looked contemplative for her part. 

Goku, his routine complete, dropped from the air and landed gently. The boys themselves and stopped, wiping the sweat from their brows. Goku took in a deep breath, then released it. "That was a good slow warm up." 

"You mean that you're faster than that?" Akane exclaimed.

He looked at her blankly. "Well, yea. I'm still weak, so I didn't think it would be a good idea to do my regular warm-up and possibly burn myself out."

"Goku, I have to ask you something." Ranma walked up.

"Ok, shoot." 

"If you really pushed yourself, just how strong would you be?"

Goku thought for a moment, examining the motions he just went through, and how his body felt. "Well, if I really tried, I could probably reach Super Saiyan 2 easy. Super Saiyan 3 would be a stretch. I'd be stronger than Trunk and Goten, that is, until they used Fusion." 

Genma spoke up, "Fusion?" He scratched his head. None of the Nerima natives understood the talk of Super Saiyan 2 or 3, but the mention of Fusion really confused them, and Goku saw this.

Goku explained. "The Fusion technique allows two equally strong fighters to merge and become a more powerful warrior. The new fighter would have personality traits of both fighters, and the skills of both, yet be a completely different person. It's a great technique, but there are many precise motions both persons have to go through in order for it to work, and it's only good for thirty minutes, and you have to wait awhile before you can use it again. I learned it from some Otherworld fighters, and I taught Goten and Trunks how to use it." He turned to the two and motioned them over. As they approached, Ranma asked, "So what good is it if it only lasts a short time?"

"All you would need is those thirty minutes." He turned to the boys, who had an idea what was coming.

"Hey guys, you wouldn't mind giving them a demonstration would you?" They sighed, their suspicious correct. 

"Ahh, well yea. We can I guess." Trunks said. Goten merely nodded. They both spread apart and stood parallel to each other. They powered up to Super Saiyan, and then to their max power, exactly equal. They extended their arms opposite of each other, parallel to the ground. They started to shuffle towards each other, three steps each, swinging their arms around till the flats of their hands where inches apart.

As they moved towards each other, they chanted, "Fuuuu. Sion." At the S part of the word fusion, they drew in the leg that was farthest from the other person, drawing it across their bodies. At the same time, they spun their arms back across from each other, their hands now fists. 

"HAA!!" They exclaimed, shooting their drawn up legs back out and bending towards each other, their arms held like the horns of bull near their heads. The first finger of both hands on both fighters were extended, and when they touched a large flash of golden light blasted forth, outshining the morning sun briefly. Everyone but Goku shielded their eyes from the blast, and when it faded, the quickly uncovered them.

Standing before them was a different boy. His hair was golden, his eyes cyan, but his outfit was different. He wore a black and yellow vest that seemed much too small, exposing highly toned his chest and stomach. Around his waist was a purple sash, holding up baggy white pants of a sort. He stood there for a moment, and finally relaxed from Super Saiyan. His hair stayed in the same position, yet remained golden, just lighter in tone. He smiled, and walked forward, arm extended. Dumbly, Ranma took it, not certain what to say. _"Whoa…these guys are intense! But…that might just be a useful technique to know." _ Was his first coherent thought.

The boy shook the hand quickly, saying, 

"Hi. My name's Gotenks."

To be continued….


	8. Chapter 7: Training time

**_*Author's note:_** I've had to update a couple of the past chapters so as to straighten out some of the information that I had put in it. Like about Saffron, and Gotenks. Thanks to Carrotglace I got my Ranma villains straight (although he doesn't know it yet heh), and I have the latest DBZ video with Gotenks in it. So I would suggest ya take a peek at the past chapters, just so that you're not lost or confused.

_Little heads up, going to be getting down and dirty here with the next few chapters, so those of you pining for a Kuno beating…well, ya just might get it. Kuno is too easy though, so maybe I'll use Mousse instead…then again, that would be breaking my 'no spoilers' rule, so maybe I won't do either. Guess you'll have to read on and find out. -_^_

**_¤§¤  
RBL_M1A2Tanker_**

**_DBZR ½_**

**_Chapter 7: Training time._**

"Hi, my name's Gotenks."

"Uh…." It was the only sound that came from Ranma. Gotenks' voice was strange to listen to. He spoke using both Trunks and Goten's voice, yet had totally different mannerisms from the two boys. Ranma simply held the boys hand in hers, a little stunned. Gotenks had other ideas though.

"Heh…" He smirked, and then tightened his grip. With a swift motion he reached forward with his free hand, grasped her tunic, and proceeded to toss her over his head. Air whistled past her ears as she flew by, heading for a distant wall. 

"Not so fast. Can't let you go away with our sparring session not yet started." Gotenks said, flying slightly above her.

"What?!" 

A kick was the response, stopping her in mid-flight, and sending her back the way she came. This time though, she managed to tuck into a roll, and ground her feet hard into the dirt. Stopping herself, she managed to look up just as the fused boy appeared before her. The look in his eyes was fearsome. Sheer arrogance, tinged with a horrible malice, or was it joy? She didn't get to ponder this though, for with a quick blur, he was gone. Before she could even look around, a kick to her rump sent her into the sky. Her butt exploded in pain as she sailed away, grimacing. 

"Damn…this hurts!" She ground out, managing to look down at the ground. She saw Gotenks standing below, smirking, hands on his hips. "I'll show him!" She spat, as she charged her power. A glow surrounded her body as her efforts brought out her battle aura. 

Now heading back towards the ground, she cried a battle cry, "MOKO TAKABISHA!" A tightly compact blue blast of energy leapt forth from her hands, blasting into Gotenks face before he thought to react. Smoke and dust filled the air as she flipped and landed on the ground, nearly falling flat on her face from the pain in her rump.

She panted as Akane, Genma, and Goku watched, all in astonishment. Before she could do more though, the dust and smoke cleared away as Gotenks flared out his aura a bit. All in the area could see and hear the golden glow about the lad. "Not bad…for a weakling." He smirked maliciously at Ranma.

"Oh yea? I'm not finished yet. My sparring session was with Trunks and Goten, but if you're all I'll get, then I'll just have to make do." Ranma said, breathing hard. Her statement merely made the young lad chuckle. 

"Oh come off it. Can't you see how strong I am? If I wanted to I could fly around the planet a hundred times and still be able to beat you." The look in his eyes challenged Ranma to question it._"Man…I have to admit…he's too fast."_ She thought. _"Too strong…too…everything! Herb was a pushover compared to this guy!" _

She would have challenged him anyways, if Goku didn't step between them.

"That's enough Gotenks. You're letting your power go to your head again." Goku said sternly. As Goku was facing the fused boy, Ranma saw an opportunity. Charging her strength again, she ran forward, leaping over Goku's surprised form, and landing directly before Gotenks, also surprised.

"Got ya…HIRYU SHOTEN HA!" She raised her arm, releasing energy she had channeled from Gotenks aura into a tornado effect. Caught off guard, Gotenks became swept up into it. Goku flipped backwards, nearly shocked at the attack.

"Ok…you had your fun, time to end this." Gotenks growled, charging up. She smirked, as he fed the spiral with his energy. His face became confused, as the power of the tornado about him got stronger, making it near impossible for him to gain control of his actions. He was hundreds of feet into the air, yet the tornado wasn't weakening.

"Uh oh…this is a problem." She thought with her arm still upraised in the middle of the spiral. Her clothing fluttered about her wildly, as Gotenks continued to pour energy into the attack in his effort to escape. She could feel her footing start to slip, as the tornado went past being a mere attack to a full-blown storm in its own right. 

An explosion suddenly occurred beneath her feet, and she lost control, heading out from the now dying spiral. Within moments, the spiral attack dissipated, leaving her on the ground, stunned. Gotenks landed hard nearby, winded. His vest had been torn, with gashes cutting up his once white slacks. Goku finally lowered his hand, having been the one to put the attack to an end. 

Gotenks panted, amazed. "Wow…for a girl she's pretty tough."

"That was an incredible attack!" Goku said as he walked over to where Ranma lay. Akane and Genma swept past though, reaching the prostrate redhead first. 

"Say something son! Are you alright?" Genma pleaded.

"Ranma, are you ok?" Akane asked, rubbing Ranma's back in an attempt to wake her.

"Yea…sure. Just wasn't expecting that is all." She struggled to rise, and managed to rise to her elbows before she fell flat again. Bruises and cuts covered her body from the debris that had been in the tornado, and from Goku's energy blast.

"Oh Ranma!"

Goku bent down, and gently twisted the girl over onto her back. He dug into his sash a moment, and pulled out a small object. "Here, this'll help. It's a senzu bean; it'll give you back your strength. I manage to keep a couple on me at all times nowadays, so I can do without one." He slipped the bean into her mouth, and she instinctively began to chew. Akane and Genma merely watched, waiting to see what would happen. 

She swallowed, and in moments her eyes snapped wide open. She stood up, all evidence of cuts or bruises gone. Akane dropped her jaw…Genma dropped like a rock. Ranma looked at her hands, flexing them a couple times, and then looked to Goku, who smiled back. 

"There, that should do it." He said, rising to his feet. 

"Hey! What about me?" The others turned to Gotenks, forgotten in the moment.

"You're fine. Ranma just caught you off guard. Had you been thinking clearly, instead of letting your power get to you, you would have caught on sooner that you were the one making the tornado so strong." Goku chided as Ranma stood.

The fused boy blinked, and looked to Ranma, who nodded. "The key to the Hiryu Shoten Ha is using your opponents energy against'em. You had lots, so it didn't take much to get the attack to work. It gets stronger the more hot energy is put into it."

Gotenks looks at the ground, contemplating. "I'll have to remember that." He said. Just then his body glowed, and he separated into Trunks and Goten again. They blinked as they returned to their powered down states, looking each other over.

"What did she do to us?" Goten asked.

"I'm not sure…oh well, we'll remember it later." Trunks replied.

A tapping on the roof got all their attention. Holding her cane, sat Cologne. "Very impressive. For all that power you had, Son-in-Law still managed to do some damage to you."

"Nah, it just drained him for a moment." Goku countered calmly. "It's a very impressive attack, but it was more luck and timing that made it work. Skillful, yes, but still lucky." 

Ranma's eye twitched briefly then turned back to the old hag. "What do you want ghoul?"

"I came as soon as I felt the largest aura ever. I had to know what was going on." She hopped down to the ground, balancing on the cane with ease. "I've got some information as well, about your friends."

"Let's hear it, we have training to do still." Ranma stretched a bit, still amazed at the beans properties. 

Cologne nodded, and began. "All three of you came here from the Jepoc circle. Many years ago, Amazon and Shinto priests managed to put wards on all the islands in the circle, containing a most malicious evil. A god of mischief had used the Jepoc circle as his entrance to this world, causing great tragedy and grief. It took many years, but in time it was managed to lock that door, keeping his powers contained within the circle. The door couldn't be closed completely, but at least it was managed to keep his influence contained within the circle."

All where sitting now, listening to the tale. Goku leaned forward, intent. Cologne continued, "Anything entering the circle is his to do with as he pleases, until they leave the circle. Granted, he has many other places he could go, but legend has it that this world held something special to him. What it was is unknown. But it is proven that anything that enters it, never escapes. Except for you three." She looked at the saiyans. 

"Hmm…wonder why that is?" Goku asked aloud, scratching his cheek.

"Why indeed." Cologne nodded. "There is a rumor that the wards could be disrupted briefly if a strong power entered it from the outside of the circle. Now, we can say that that rumor is true."

They thought this over a moment. Akane spoke up first. "Ok, so to send them back, a strong power has to enter the circle first, right?" 

"That isn't necessary child. They could go back now if they felt ready; however, they would fall under the God's power instantly. Who knows what he would do?" Cologne shuddered.

"This god guy, he have a name?" Trunks asked.

"His name is Toltiir. He derives his power from whatever mischief he can create, usually using someone's own dreams against them. Other times he makes a coincidence happen. It's whatever he can come up with, and the more he pulls off, the stronger he gets. He was known to work in short spans, gaining power, and then going away for a time. It was during one of those lulls that we managed to lock him out."

Goku looked up sharply, "Ma'am is there a specific energy signature within the circle?" Cologne blinked, whether at the polite term, or at the question is hard to say. 

"Why…yes, there is. You should be able to sense it just by going near the circle. Why?" She blinked, not truly following.

"Good. Then we need to lock him out of our world as well. Who knows what damage he may have caused." Goku looked determined, eyes set, his mind locked on a specific goal now. He turned to the old woman again, "Cologne, is there some way that we can be protected when we enter the circle?"

She thought for a moment. "Yes. There is. We place spirit wards on you, so that your trip wouldn't be disturbed. But take them off for just a moment, and that's all he needs. You would also need to place wards around his entry point to your world, much like we did here. Do you know of any priests that have that kind of skill in your world?"

Ranma interrupted before Goku could reply. "I bet not, but I know of at least one here." Everyone turned a blank stare to Ranma, who grinned widely. Cologne's eyes grew wide at the implication.

"Are you suggesting…"

"Yup. You're it old ghoul." The pig-tailed fighter smirked. "After you're done there, he can bring you back afterwards. We know he can get here, so that shouldn't be a problem, right?"

"Eh hehe." Goku scratched the back of his head. "Well, you see…there's a problem there." Now it was Ranma's turn to stare blankly. "In order for me to use the Instant Transmission, I need a strong energy signature to focus on. There really isn't one on this world that I can lock on easily. I had a hard enough time tracking the boys." He blinked, as an idea crossed his mind.

"That's it!" He turned to the boys before they could say anything. "Do you two think you guys would be ok if I left you here until we lock this Toltiir guy out of our world? I'll make sure to clear it with your mothers." That relaxed them.

"Yea, that would be ok to me." Trunks said.

"Sounds fun!" Goten agreed.

"Great!" He turned now to the two Nerima teens. "While we're there, maybe I can do something for you." 

"Ahh…what's that?" Ranma asked, suspicious. What came next blew him and Akane away.

"Why not both of you come to our world with us? You could learn a lot, and show me some more of your techniques while I'm waiting for her to be finished." He motioned to Cologne, who was thinking of ways to turn this new development to her advantage.

"My boy will go with you Master Goku!" Genma suddenly sprang up, seemingly from nowhere. 

"What? I didn't agree to anything…" Ranma began, but was interrupted by his father. 

"Boy, you'll do this without complaint. You'll go with this man, and learn all there is to learn! You'll make this school one of the strongest schools of martial arts there is!" Dollar signs flashed in his eyes briefly as thoughts of all the students his son would teach. His son, for his part, merely hung her head in defeat. 

"Guess I'll go, if just to shut him up." She said.

"Show your father some respect boy! Take this like a man!" Genma took a flying kick at his son, but was stopped in mid-flight. Goku held his outstretched leg, and then tossed the older man behind him into the pond. Goku turned to Ranma, who sat in surprise at the action. 

"You know, he is kinda annoying. For some reason, that felt pretty good." Goku smiled. Ranma grinned back cheerfully, his measure of the man up several levels. 

"Goku, if you wouldn't mind a request." Goku turned back to the old woman. 

"Sure, what is it?" 

"You wouldn't mind bringing at least one more person would you? I have a Great-Granddaughter wouldn't mind learning some new techniques." Before Ranma could get a word in, Goku answered.

"Sure! The more the merrier! Sometime tomorrow would probably be a good time to do this." 

Akane smoldered, her hair slowly rising as her anger fueled her energy. Ranma glared at the old woman, who merely looked back content. "Why Son-in-law…you wouldn't think I would leave your wife behind would you?"

"She's not my wife you old hag!" Ranma cried.

"Yea!" Akane replied.

"Neither are you for that matter, you uncute tomboy." Ranma said without thinking.

"What did you call me?! I'LL SHOW YOU!" With a flash of blue she charged up her energy, hair on end. Instead of the gold it was the night before, her aura glowed a bright blue. There were still blond streaks in the hair, but her eyes didn't change color this time. From nowhere, a mallet appeared in her hand as she charged.

"MALLET WHACK ATTACK!" Within the space of less than five seconds, Akane had pummeled the redhead over twenty times, ending with a finishing move that knocked the cursed martial artist into a wall on the other side of the yard. She left an imprint in the wall, legs tucked in, arms splayed out, fingers in the shape of horns, with the thumbs pointing to her head. 

Akane huffed as she put the mallet away, her aura dieing back down. Goku, Goten, Trunks and Cologne merely looked on in wonder. Goku turned to the old woman, "Is she always like this?" 

"Usually. It's normal around here." She shrugged.

"Oh." Goku blinked.

Unbeknownst to them all, a camera clicked away furiously from some bushes, catching every movement, attack, and technique. As they went back to training, a figure continued to take pictures, and then slipped away over the wall. The figure turned to look back, a red bandanna on its head. "Soon Ranma Saotome, you'll be at my mercy, you and your friends. I'll know everything there is to know about how you fight, and I'll earn the love of Akane! 

With that said, the young man known only as Copycat Ken leapt away.

To be continued….


	9. Chapter 8: The Training Continues

**_*Author's note:_** This'll be a quick one. The very beginning has the opening part of Carrotglace's "Insertion" story, with his permission to use it here. A good read, I highly recommend it, just be prepared to be reading it for a couple of days if you haven't started to read it yet.

_**¤§¤  
M1A2Tanker**_

**_DBZR ½_**

**__**

Chapter 8: The Training Continues…

_**In an alternate dimension…**_

_"A familiar scene, Jusenkyo, in the Bayankala mountain range of China. Ranma Saotome trading blows with his father over the quiet pools of water, atop bamboo chutes that jut from the small ponds._

Two fanfic writers, typing the exact same opening, to two different stories. They moved in tandem, their hands working on the keys in perfect unison, even though neither of them knows who the other is. Things like this happen on occasion, it is rare indeed. The chances are similar to those of a monkey writing out the complete works of Shakespeare.

Few people realize it, but almost all works of fiction are self-insertions on some level. Whether it is a wish for a better world, or a craving for a life of adventure that the author will never have, is uncertain. It is possible that it is just the venting of frustrations, played out upon someone who cannot retaliate in any way, no one person has the same motivation.

On some level, a small portion of the author's soul is taken and placed into the story, perhaps becoming a reality in some distant universe. The mechanics of such things is uncertain, however, this time, something different happened.

As Ranma fell into the pool that would change his destiny forever, two souls attempted to merge with his own, in order to exact the changes that would carry their tales.

Inside Ranma's head, a sound echoed for a moment. It was almost like the sound of two coconuts colliding together on some astral level. How the astral coconuts had arrived at their destination is uncertain as well. Whether they were carried by two astral swallows could remain in debate for eons to come, as well as whether said swallows were of the African variety, or the European kind. Such things are best left to philosophers anyway…naaaah, this answer is far too simple for them to figure out. 

Toltiir laughed uproariously at the mischief he had just created. "I'm sure that the Lord of Chaos won't mind. Knowing him, he'd probably go for this anyways." The god felt a presence over him, but it passed quickly, and he knew then and there that his hunch was right.

"Yes yes…what great fun. Why didn't I look into the alternate realities before?" A note fluttered to the floor before him, interrupting his musings. He reached down and quickly picked it up. It read, **"Because that's my area. Keep your hands to yourself. This is your one warning. Oh yea, while I'm thinking about it, thanks for the distraction. This should keep me entertained for awhile."** A smiley face with a carrot impaling it finished the note, the symbol of L-Sama, or the Lord of Chaos, god boss of all gods. 

"Awww...common. It was just a little harmless fun!" Toltiir pouted. He got over it quickly though as he went back to playing in the worlds and dimensions he could mess with. "Gee me…what will I do tonight?" He mused aloud.

"Same thing you do every night my lord." A servant called from afar.

"Try to take over the world?" The god asked.

"You've done that sire, several times, and on several worlds."

"Oh yea. Uh…get stuck in a closet with Vanna White?

"Last time you did that, she nearly castrated you sire."

He shuddered. "I'd forgotten about that. I did get her back for that right?" 

"Yes sire. She's still stuck with the lesbian biker gang."

"Good." He thought for a bit more, then finally sighed. "Oh just tell me, I forgot what it was I do every night."

"You watch Ren and Stimpy reruns my liege." 

"That's it!" With that the god bounds away, leaving the servants to wipe the sweat from their brows in relief.

**_In the Tendo Dojo…_**

Ranma didn't know how long she had been imbedded in the wall. It could have been days, weeks, minutes, even seconds. All she knew was that she was in major pain when she woke several hours later. She peeled herself out of the concrete wall slowly, still feeling the effects of Akane's Mallet Whack Attack. "Where the hell did she get such a crazy attack anyways? Damn, that hurt!" She rubbed the bruises on her body as she walked back to where the others were training. Goten and Trunks had gone back to sparring, with neither one really dominating the other. Genma was out cold, floating in the pond. Goku was talking with Akane, and Cologne sat on the porch, watching, or more likely eavesdropping on the conversation. As Ranma approached, she picked up parts of what Goku was saying.

"…once you do that, flying is really pretty simple." Ranma's ears perked up. "Flying? You taught her how to fly?" Goku looked over, blinking his eyes. 

"Ahh, just the basics. We haven't practiced yet though." 

"I thought you were going to teach me something!" Ranma was jealous for certain now. _"How could he show her how to fly and not show me?"_

"Well yea. I can teach you both how to do it. It's easy!" He grinned. He motioned the redheaded fighter over to Akane. Ranma looked over to Akane and quickly asked, "Before we do this, I have to know something."

"Umm…what's that?" Goku replied.

The red haired fighter turned to her finance and asked, "Akane, where did you come up with that crazy attack from?" Ranma flinched as a recently returned memory triggered a pain spasm in her head. For her part, Akane just smiled. 

"You know that new foreign restaurant from America? _Mobsters Pizza?_" Ranma nodded dimly, not sure how a pizza place figured into the scheme of things. "I went there with some friends a couple times. I guess it's modeled after some gang thing in America, because there's an arcade section in there, and they have all these games that have something to do with running alcohol, shooting stuff, and keeping away from police." Ranma became more and more confused.

"I thought you hated arcades?"

"I do, but I found game that I like. I'm really very good at it." The youngest Tendo was quite proud of this. "It's called _Whack a Kennedy_. It has these little figures that pop up and down, and you have to hit them with a hammer to get points. I hold the highest score there, but I still haven't gotten the one called Ted. It's the fattest figure in the game, but I swear it's the fastest!" 

Ranma dropped her head, shaking it. "I guess I shoulda known, seeing as how you use that mallet so much. Bout time you were good at something." 

"What was that?" Akane said angrily. 

"What? I just said that it's about time you were good at something….aaack!!" Ranma found in increasingly hard to breath with her finance's hands around her throat. Alarmed, Goku quickly jumped in to separate them, before Ranma changed hair color from red to blue. 

"That's enough. I can't teach you anything if you're trying to kill each other." He said sternly, hands on his hips.

Her head bowed slightly, Akane said, "I'm sorry Goku." Ranma took in some breaths before she spoke. 

"Geez Akane, I was trying to compliment you!" Before Akane or Goku could do anything, Ranma was hit on the head by knob part of Cologne's cane. 

"What was that for?" She cried, rubbing her head again. Cologne chuckled as she answered, "Training you to learn some manners Son-in-Law. You'll need them once you come to your senses and finally marry Shampoo."

"I ain't marring anybody!" The cursed martial artist cried.

Suddenly, a call from the front of the dojo is heard. "Hey! Where's that tough guy dressed in orange baggy pants! We've come for our toll fees!" 

Everyone looked to Goku, who scratched his head in confusion. "Toll fees? Oh yea! Those kids. I forgot about them." He chuckled.

"Daddy, what are you talking about?" Goten asked, worried.

"It's nothing son, I just ran into some kids on the way here yesterday. Kept saying something about paying a toll for being on their road. But I didn't see a toll booth." A crash interrupts the explanation, as a window was broken. 

"Send the bastard out! We brought someone here to enforce the toll, and we're collecting interest!"

Everyone quickly rushes to the front of the house. Akane, Ranma and Soun step onto the front porch, while Goten, Trunks and Goku stayed inside. Goten looked up at Goku, "Why are we staying in here?"

Goku replied, "Let's see what they have first. Besides, this is their home, they should defend it if necessary."

The answer seemed to mollify the lad, and they went back to listening in.

On the porch, Akane, Ranma and Soun look on at the small group. It was the same kids that attacked Goku before, along with several strong looking street thugs. Near the leader of the gang stood a large, stocky man wearing a pink karate fighter's uniform. His hands wore brown sparring gloves, and his eyes glared at the residents.

"This is what you brought me here for? These three? A waste of my time. I'll take my money now." Dan Hibiki, a self-taught martial artist turned street fighter declared. 

"Now now Dan. None of these people are the ones. The one we brought you for is hiding like the coward he is." 

"Cousin?" 

Everyone turned in the direction of the voice. 

Ranma spoke first. "Ryoga? What are you doing here?" The Lost Boy spat as he answered.

"I came here to finish you off, but it looks like someone else has dibs first." At that moment Dan spoke up.

"Cousin Ryoga? You have beef with the chick?" He thrust a thumb at the red-haired fighter, who just realized that she was still female.

"Yea, but I won't mind waiting my turn." Ryoga smirked. Dan nodded. "Ok cousin." He turned back to the residents.

"Send out the guy I'm supposed to fight already. I know he's afraid of me, but at least he will have the honor of fighting Dan, the strongest fighter in the world!" Ranma and Akane both burst out laughing at the statement. Even Ryoga chuckled a little. Dan glared at him, and the Lost Boy regained his composure, although he couldn't hide the smirk. 

"You? The strongest? Please. I could take you easy." Ranma smirked confidently.

"Then why don't you little girl?" Ranma growled at the comment as the other gang members cleared away from Dan, who held his hands out to the sides, palms out, submissive. 

"Fine then, I will!" The red head charged at Dan, intent on finishing the fight quickly. A foot slammed into her face, sending her sprawling, but not before she was kicked two more times in mid air. She landed at the bottom of the porch steps, her ample chest heaving. _"Damn, what the hell did he hit me with?"_ She thought to herself as she quickly rose to her feet. Catching site of the pink fighter, who was in combat stance now, she attacked again. From the roof Cologne watched with interest. "Let's see if you can handle him Son-in-Law." She muttered. 

Ranma leapt into the air, dropping down at Dan from above with a sharp snap kick. He replied with a spinning uppercut. "Koryu Ken!" It nailed her right in the crotch, sending her flying a short distance away, and in great pain. "Ahhh!! He fights dirty!" She glared in pain at the street fighter, who shrugged, "In a street fight, anything goes girly. You should have thought of that before challenging me." He quickly rolled on the ground towards her now crouched form, and crouched himself before her, thrusting his muscled arm up in an L shape. The fist nailed her under her chin, and she flew backwards, as he called out, "Namen Je Ne Dou!"

She flipped in mid air, and landed on her feet, her pain now mostly forgotten. She eyed the street fighter warily as he rose, still in a combat stance. She smirked, "Ok, I'll admit it. I underestimated you. But this fight is about to end." Dan cocked an eyebrow at this. "Moko Takabisha!" She launches her Tiger energy attack at Dan. Just before the blast hits, he extends an arm, palm out with his own attack, "Gado Ken!" A weak attack, with no distance, it was still strong enough to cancel out her blast. 

She nods appreciatively. "Not bad. But I'm afraid the fight is still over for you." Before she could attack, the front door slide open. Goku steps out into the now late morning sunshine, his features cool. Upon his lips, a slight smirk. His hands fists, down at his sides. He stood between Soun and Akane, who had been watching the fight closely. The gang leader sees him and pointing at Goku he calls out, "Dan! That's him! That's the bastard there!" Dan looks away from his opponent and sizes Goku up. He turns back to Ranma, and relaxes his stance. 

"Sorry girl, but I have to conclude this other deal first before we can finish our fight." He walked away from Ranma, and stood before Goku. "Nothing personal buddy, but I got some money coming my way when I take you down." He takes up his stance again, legs slightly wider than shoulder width, fists close to the chest with one above the other. He lightly bounces back and forth on the balls of his feet.

Goku's smirk grows a little as he steps off the porch. He looks at the pink clad fighter, and then crosses his arms across his chest. "I suggest you leave. There's no need for this. These two could take you just fine," he gestures his head to Akane and Ranma, "I only came out to warn you off before it got ugly." Akane started. "_What? Me beat him? How can I? There's no way…_" her musings were cut shorts as the stocky fighter laughed. 

"What? Those two children? I don't think so." He smirked, eyes twinkled dangerously. "I've fought the strongest fighters in the world, and these two don't come close to them. I was taking it easy on the girl." Ranma cocked an eyebrow, thinking to herself, "_Funny…that's what I thought I was doing to **him**_."

Goku shook his head, and then said, "Leave now. There's no need for any of this, it's nothing more than a waste of time and energy." Dan scowled. 

"I see that the gang was right. You are a coward." Goku's eyes went hard, but the smirk didn't leave. It did seem to change from being a joking smirk, to something far more dangerous. From the roof Cologne watched, highly interested in what might transpire. 

Goten and Trunks had by now stepped onto the porch. They were quaking slightly though, and sweat beaded from their foreheads. Akane noticed and whispered to Goten. "What's wrong? Is this guy that strong?"

Goten shook his head, taking a slight step back. Frowning, Akane asked again, "Then what's wrong?"

"Dad's mad…" He whispered.

"Very mad. I think we should go now." Trunks also whispered, taking a couple steps away from the porches edge. Before they could do anything else, Goku spoke, his voice now hard. 

"Very well. Have it your way. I gave you an out, but if you don't want to take it, then so be it." Goku took up his tiger stance; torso bent over his right leg, left leg back, arms held horizontal to his shoulders. His hands were formed into claws, his gaze as hard as steel.

Dan cocked his head slightly at the stance. "What kind of posture is this?" He had noticed the mood shift in his opponent, and was playing it cautious. "_This man is no weakling. He's seen more than his share of fights._" A bead of sweat slowly trickled down his temple. "_Maybe it would have been a good idea to have left…no, Dan Hibiki never leaves a fight!_" He hardened his gaze, but it was weak compared to Goku's.

For a couple of minutes they stood there, eyeing one another. Cologne analyzed both fighters from her perch. "_Hmm. Goku's form is flawless. Good for attack and defense. Dan's is also well polished, yet he is having second thoughts. He's losing the battle of wills. I must see Goku's face._" Leaping off the roof on her cane, she lands on the concrete wall facing opposite of the Saiyan without anyone noticing. She gazed at the orange clad fighter, and her heart nearly stopped. Her eyes became wide as saucers, and her aged body slightly trembled. "_By the Elders! The intensity, the focus! His soul is still pure, but he could kill without a second thought. This is a warrior beyond any that I've encountered before._"

Across from Goku, Ranma also gazed at the Saiyan in shock. "_My god…he didn't have that kind of focus before. And he can transform into a Super Saiyan…he wasn't kidding. He **was** holding back a lot._" She noticed the man's arms, and realized that they were more defined than before. Cords of muscle bunched up tighter than bridge cables under the skin as both fighters waited to see what the other would do. She looked at Dan, and saw that he was also highly focused…yet it seemed greatly weak in comparison. "_So Dan was going easy. He has to know that he can't win!_"

Finally, Goku broke the silence. "I give you one last chance. There is no dishonor in conceding the fight over before it begins." Dan shook his head.

"I have given my word. Besides, that money is mine." The last comment sounded weak, even to the gang members, who had realized that maybe they were in over their heads. 

Ryoga watched from across the street, enthralled. "_This man has seen hell like me, yet I would have left the fight rather than face that. You always were a fool cousin._"

Goku replied, "Then I'll make this quick." A blur marked the spot where he stood. Dan started to cry out in surprise, but a fist suddenly doubled him over. Goku pulled his left fist out of the street fighters gut, then spun around and landed his left elbow in the mans head hard. Dan's body collapsed like a sack of grain, and didn't get up. 

The Saiyan warrior rose, took a deep breath and exhaled. "No one calls me a coward. Not in a fight. Not even Vegeta." He gazed down at the unconscious man. "I respect you for seeing it through though. Maybe you'll learn something from this." He now turned his gaze at the gang members, all of whom trembled where they stood.

The gang leader looked around him unsurely. He knew he was in deep hock now. Dan was the strongest fighter they could get on short notice. He turned to Ryoga, and cried out hopefully, "You! How would you like to make some…" he stopped speaking as Ryoga shook his head. 

"No way. Find someone else." The Lost Boy said.

"Not even for family honor?" The leader was grasping at straws, but then he was getting desperate.

"Not even for that. Dan always was considered a fool by most of the family." 

From the bushes behind Ranma, a small figure leapt out. A foot lashed out, hitting the cursed girl hard in the back. Crying out in pain, Ranma rolled forward, turning to face the new threat. Standing before her, was a red haired, ample chested girl in a sleevless red silk shirt and gray pants…just like her. Everyone had turned to face Ranma when she had cried out, and now all looked on in confusion between the two petite women. 

Goten scratched his head, asking aloud, "Ahh…which one is which?" 

"That's what I want to know." Akane said.

"I'm the real Ranma, this one is an imposter!" Ranma cried.

"No, I'm the real Ranma, that one is the copy!" The other Ranma said, pointing at her double.

Goku looked intently at the two, using his senses to pick up on their energy…and picked up on the real and the fake. "This one is Ranma." He pointed to the nearest redhead. "That one is a copier."

The other Ranma smirked, "Bingo." She pulled out a large handkerchief and fluttered it before herself, hiding her body from view. When it passed, a young male teen stood in her place, dressed in a red and white striped T-shirt, gray sweat pants held up by suspenders, and a red handkerchief on his head. "And today is the day that I beat you Ranma Saotome." 

Soun Tendo cried out in terror, "No! Not the dreaded Copycat Ken!" 

"Copycat Ken?" Ranma said, eyebrow cocked in confusion. 

"Yes, Copycat Ken! He copies a martial artist moves and makes them his own, to the point of becoming the martial artist he copied! He's terrible, you must stay away from him Ranma!" 

"No way, I'm going to beat this guy. I owe him now for hitting me from behind." She took up a fighting stance, face scowling.

Copycat Ken shook a finger at her though. "Not so fast Saotome. I've also got all the moves of all your friends, and your enemies." He fluttered the handkerchief again, and this time Ryoga stood before her, then Mousse, then Happosai, then Kuno. Ranma surprise was evident, but her stance didn't drop. 

"Yea, looks like you got them alright. Won't help you any." She charged the boy as he fluttered the kerchief again. Before she got to him, it had fluttered away, leaving…

"Ranma watch out!" Goku cried out in surprise as Goten and Trunks's glowing fused version stood before a now shocked Ranma. The Super Saiyan child smirked maliciously as the pig-tailed girl nearly plowed into him. With a blur, the boy vanished, only to reappear behind her to kick the girl high into the sky. Before she got far he had appeared behind her again, and landed a hard double-fisted blow to her back. She screamed in pain from the attack. The girl landed into the ground with a slam, leaving a deep imprint in the ground. 

"Man…how did he manage to copy Gotenk's moves!" She tried to pick herself up, but her body screamed in protest. Ken landed on the concrete wall, and the kerchief fluttered again, this time leaving the real Ken in place. 

"You! How you like to make some easy money! One hundred-thousand yen to be exact!" The gang leader now felt he had a clincher, someone stronger than the pathetic Dan. 

"I don't want money, I only want the love of Akane…wait a sec, did you say one hundred-thousand yen?" Ken looked at the leader, who shook his head enthusiastically.

"All you have to do is beat him, and the money is yours!" The leader pointed at Goku, who looked more than slightly annoyed.

Copycat Ken looked down at Goku thoughtfully then fluttered the kerchief again. When it cleared, Goku gazed up himself.

Taking up Goku's trademark tiger stance on the wall, Ken said in Goku's voice, "Alright. This shouldn't take long at all."

To be continued….


	10. Chapter 9: Goku vs Copycat Ken

**_DBZR 1/2_**

**_Goku vs Copycat Ken._**

"I agree. This won't take long." Goku smiled. It wasn't pleasant, nor was it malicious. Superior.

His doppelganger stood in his own stance on top of the concrete wall around the Tendo Dojo, gazing on him dispassionately. 

"So you copy other fighters techniques?" Goku asked arms crossed upon his chest.

"Yea. You don't know how many fighters I've beaten this way." Copycat Ken smirked.

"Well then. Let's see what you copied." The Saiyan warrior uncrossed his arms, relaxed. His copy scowled in reply.

"Haaaa ah!" Ken leapt at Goku, right arm drawn back, left leg straight back. A small chip of concrete shot off the wall from the force of his leap. In a blink Ken had closed in with Goku, throwing his left in a jab, following up with his right hard. Goku lazily blocked both hits, but fell forward when Ken swept his feet out from under him, and followed it up with a sharp uppercut. The Saiyan flew upwards a short distance seemingly out for the count. Ken stood up, extending an arm, palm out. A yellow energy ball formed and shot forward to nail Goku in midair. Smoke filled the air where it hit, but the Saiyan warrior dropped out of the cloud without a problem. Goku landed on his feet, only slightly smoking from the blast. Ken frowned, puzzled. He charged forward again, this time attacking in a flurry of punches and kicks, which were all lazily blocked as before. Goku smirked as Ken flipped backwards, and then flew forwards, again right arm back, left leg out. Ken lashed out with a hard right, but this time, his fist passed straight through the Saiyans face.

"What the?!" The copy exclaimed as the after image faded. "Where…how...?"

A simple shove to his back ended his confusion as Goku nailed Ken from behind. Goku's copy staggered forward, reeling from being off-center when he had struck. He managed to get himself turned around, and gazed in surprise when he saw Goku standing right where he was before, still relaxed.

"Wha…how did you do that? I know all your moves!" Ken exclaimed angrily.

"Wrong," Goku corrected, "you only thought you knew all my moves. Truth is, I haven't done anything yet." 

"No! That's not true! That's impossible! I saw you!" Ken glanced over as he heard laughter coming from the house.

The power having been restored, Ranma now stood in male form, and wearing only a couple of bandages on some cuts from his encounter with the copy Gotenks. "Don't you get it yet? Those weren't any special moves, those were his standard fighting attacks he was practicing!" 

"You stay out of this Ranma! I'll deal with you soon enough!" Ken fired off an energy blast at Ranma in anger.

"Look out!" Soun cried as the blast shot towards the pig-tailed fighter. Ranma bladed his hand, swung his arm, and deflected the shot into the air, much like Goku did the night before with his attack. He smirked, "You're not the only one who can copy moves Ken."

Ken looked on in shock. His plan wasn't going well at all. He'd shown his hand too soon. He contemplated retreating when Goku spoke up.

"I think it's time to end this Copycat Ken. But first, I have something I'd like to show you. I think you'll like it." He smiled that same superior smile from before.

Ken gazed back, wary, taking a combat stance again. "What do you want to show me?"

"A couple tricks of my own." Goku clenched his hands, still smiling. Suddenly his face became like stone as he concentrated. 

"Raaaah!" He cried out in concentration as his hair flew upwards. In less than an instant a flash of gold burst forth, blinding everyone watching. Squinting his eyes, Ken looked at Goku. In total disbelief he gazed on the transformed warrior before him. His hair stood on end, with two bangs hanging over his forehead. Both his hair and his eyebrows were golden, and his eyes had become cyan. Around his body a golden sheen could be seen, and all heard a slight buzz in the air.

"That's my first trick. Ready for the second?" Ken, still as the powered down Goku, nodded dumbly.

"Alright then. Now don't blink, or you'll miss it." The Super Saiyan said helpfully. He cupped his hands at his side, in full view of the Dojo residents, but not to Ryoga, Cologne, or the street toughs. "What's he doing? What is that sudden surge I sense?" Cologne asked herself, watching.

A small blue globe of light filled his hands, and expanded till it filled his hands. As it grew, a strange warbling sound was heard, high pitched and fast. While it grew, Goku chanted, "Kaaaaaa Meeeeee Haaaaa Meeeee…" Rays of light could be seen from between his fingers. Ken trembled, not sure what to do now. He didn't know this technique, and he feared what was going to happen.

shot his cupped hands forward, exclaimi "Haaaaa!" A mournful wail filled the air as a blue ball blasted forward, leaving a tail as it aimed straight at Copycat Ken. Thinking quickly Ken leapt into the air, flying as high as he could. Goku merely pulled his hands up, and the blast curved upwards, blasting Ken in mid-air. When the beam faded, Ken fell to the ground, no longer in the form of Goku. He was once again back to normal.

From her perch, Cologne gazed on in amazement. _"A continuous energy attack…I've heard of this, but I've never seen one before."_ She mused. A germ of an idea formed in her mind as she plotted ways to get either Goku, or one of the two boys into the tribe. _"With just one of them, the tribe will be more than simply rejuvenated, it'll become more powerful than any in China. Getting all three would be a great feat, but I fear that it would be for naught."_ She looked up from her thoughts when the buzz in the air abated.

Goku now stood before Copycat Ken in his untransformed state, gazing on in pity. 

On the other hand, the gang leader feared for his life as his last hope was dashed. He'd gotten into a mess he couldn't possibly have foreseen, and now couldn't get out of. A couple gang members started to shuffle away, hoping they don't get seen. Unfortunately…

"Where do you think you're going?" They looked back as an angry Ranma and Akane walked forward purposely. 

"You owe us at the least a broken window, although I may take a bit more out of you for the trouble you've caused us." Ranma stated darkly.

"Wait…I-I'm…" A weak voice interrupted. They looked in its direction, and saw Ken rising painfully. "I'm…not finished…yet. I'll show you all…the best Copycat move ever!" With a sudden quick flourish Ken pulled out his handkerchief, and began to flip it and himself several times, each time he was uncovered a different fighter would appear. Happsoai, Soun, Genma, Ranma, Akane, Kuno, Mousse, Ryoga, Gotenks, Goten, Trunks, Goku, Mousno, Ranten, Happosoun, Akunks….

"Ahh…wait a sec…why does it seem he's getting all messed up?" Trunks asked aloud, while everyone else gazed on in puzzlement.

"Amazing." Akane said.

"Looks kinda ridiculous if ya ask me." Ranma said wryly as Ken's form kept shifting, mixing several fighters into one…obviously not by plan. 

"Someone." Flip. Kunos' head on Akane's torso and Mousse's legs appeared.  
"Please." Flip. Happosais' head on Trunk's torso and Goku's legs appeared.  
"Stop." Flip. Ranmas' female head on Goku's torso and Genma's legs appeared.  
"Me!" Flip. Ryogas' head on Gotenk's torso and Happosai's legs appeared.

"Whatever." Trunks said as Goten pulled out his bo, calling out, "Power pole extend!" The short red pole extended several feet into the air, and then swung downward as Goten drilled the short-circuited Copycat Ken into the ground, ending his antics. "Power pole retract." The bo shortened back to its original length. 

While Goten was taking care of Ken, Ranma and Akane had taken up their march towards the street toughs and gang members. The leader smirked, and cried, "Gett'em men!" The thugs pulled out numerous weapons, such as chains, bats with nails, brass knuckles, and knives, brandishing them menacingly at the two teens. From across the group of criminals, Ryoga growled slightly, but held back when Goku looked at him and shook his head slightly. He read the Saiyan's lips, "It's their home, let them handle it."

He ground his teeth slightly, but nodded assent. _"I'll jump in though if any of them hurt Akane." _ The Lost Boy watched on as Ranma and Akane took up combat stances, although a bit wary. 

_"Man...this isn't good."_ Ranma assessed the situation. _"Lots of them…most armed…and I'll have to cover for Akane. This limits my options a lot. I wish that tomboy had stayed behind." _ Akane's thoughts weren't following the same track as her luckless fiancées' though. Her body was tense, almost trembling with anticipation.

She looked on wary, yet eager. _"There sure are a lot of them. Should I go easy on them and hold back or not?"_ She shook her head, _"What's the deal here? Why am I acting so…so…eager?" _ No answer was forthcoming as the gang members slowly began to encircle them both. Some glared, others leered. A few spun their chains, or patted their bats/other weapons against their hands rhythmically. 

"Akane, Ranma!" The two turned back towards the house as Goten and Trunks rushed up. 

"No fair fighting against someone who doesn't have anything. Here Akane, use this." Goten tossed her his power pole, which she caught and spun about in her hands fairly skillfully, facing the gang again as she did so, smirking again highly eager. The pole extended automatically to accommodate her longer arms as she held it across her body diagonally. Wordlessly Trunks tossed his sword to Ranma, who caught it in mid-air. He spun the balanced blade about the air with far greater skill than Akane had spun the pole, also facing the group with a smirk. He held the sword one handed, with the two fingers of his other placed on the hilt, the blade held across his chest, point up.

The street toughs didn't seem concerned though. "Lesse if youse can use dat kid." One of the larger ones leered, holding a bat with nails in it.

"Come on then." Ranma baited the thugs. They took it willingly, coming in expecting their superior numbers and variety of weapons to take them out quickly. They were sadly mistaken. 

In less than a minute, all the thugs were down, without one of them laying so much as a finger on the teens. The original gang members trembled where they stood. A young woman deftly pulled a small throwing knife out, tossing it in the same motion at Akane. Akane managed to dodge the blade, but not before it had nicked her cheek slightly. 

"Akane!" Ryoga rushed forward in anger, blindly charging through the last of the gang like a mad bull. Blows rained down on them as Ranma, Akane, and Ryoga finished off the last of the gang, leaving the leader to stand-alone. Ryoga, Ranma and Akane stood around the leader in a rough circle, watching. Goku walked out into the street with them, gazing at the leader hard. For his part, the young man lost control of his bodily functions.

Disgusted, Ranma merely said, "Whatever money you had, leave it. All of it. Then go."

"Leave here, and never bother these people again. Otherwise, I might have to deal with you myself." Goku said, arms crossed before his chest. The gang member, drained of color, merely nodded dumbly as he removed a satchel from a moped bike, dropping it on the ground before Ranma. After which he rushed to the little scooter and took off, screeching the little tires as he did so.

Akane rushed forward, dropped Goten's power pole and opened the satchel. Her eyes widened at the amount of money she saw inside. "Ranma…there's only ten-thousand yen in here."

Trunks sword leaning against the wall, Ranma rubbed the hand that had deflected Copycat Ken's energy attack, muttering, "Figures he'd lie about the amount of money he was going to pay." He turned his attention back to the sword, hefting it as he did so. _"This is an excellent blade. The balance is perfect, and the handle doesn't slip at all." _ He twirled it about him expertly, getting a better feel for it now that he had a moment to play with it, leaving slight slashing sounds as it flitted through the air. _ "It cuts through the air cleanly, becoming one with the user with ease. Wish I had one of these, not that I need one." _ He mused, smirking. He rubbed his hand again, still slightly red. _ "Damn that stung."_ He said under his breath.

Akane picked up the satchel, and then the bo, and headed back into the Tendo Dojo. She gazed at the red pole as she walked, twisting and twirling it this way and that, in a silent examination of the weapon. It had retracted back to its shorter size when she had set it down, and now looked nothing more than a thick stick. _ "Weird. I thought it was longer..." _She thought to herself before being unexpectedly tackled by a blur of orange.

"WowthatwassocoolyoudidgreatIneverseenagirlfightsogoodbeforemanthatwasawesome…" Goten's litany was long and continuous, moving at a speed only little boys can speak. Stars seemed to spin around Akane's head as Goten sat on her stomach. 

Ranma couldn't help but laugh, yet was wary, in case Trunks tried the same thing. Thankfully, Trunks merely walked up to the cursed fighter and held out the sheath. As Ranma slid the sword home with a metallic clang, its owner said, "Not bad." Ranma's eye twitched. 

"Not…bad?"

"Yea. Could have been better, but I guess you're just not strong enough to use it fully." Trunks said this nonchalantly, as if talking about how a certain player did in a soccer match. Leaving an angry teen behind, he stepped over to where Goten was still blasting a dazed Akane with fast talk, and whollaped him behind the head. He hit the younger boys head hard enough to knock it into Akane's chest…much to her shock and embarrassment. 

"Ow!" Goten rubbed the back of his head when he sat back up. "That hurt! Why did you hit me Trunks!" He glared at his friend, who scowled back slightly.

"You've seen a girl fight before Goten. Remember the World Martial Arts Tournament and Videl?" Trunks reminded. He continued, "She fought better than Akane, a lot better." 

"Yea, well, she didn't have the power pole, so there!" Goten stuck his tongue out. Akane sat up and gently pulled Goten off. 

Goku groaned inwardly as Trunks and Goten continued, with Ranma, Ryoga and Akane watching. "Oh well...kids will be kids I guess."

**_Back in Dragonball Z dimension…_**

"Argh…what's taking that blasted woman so long?" Vegeta ground out automatically, and then winced. Old habits die hard, and he hadn't been coping with the sudden 'youth-a-nizing' of his mate. For the past couple of days he'd been watching her like a hawk as both of them tried to get a handle on her sudden growth…retraction. Thankfully, her mind hadn't been affected, retaining all of her 30+ years of knowledge and experiences. 

Upstairs in Trunks room, she dug about in her son's clothing to find something that might fit. It had been an ongoing ordeal, trying to at least make use of her own things, but nothing seemed to work right. Finally she gave up and decided to use something from Trunks's wardrobe. Standing in the nude, she tossed things behind her as she went through everything, looking for something that would work.

"No…this won't do. Oh lord no, not my color. Eh…not bad, but not quite, I'll put that in the 'maybe' pile. My god, I actually gave that to him? What the hell is this???" She pulled out something that looked like fuzzy underwear and nylon stockings. She blushed furiously, mostly in outrage at the thought of her son in drag, when she remembered her mother saying something about missing her 'special' party outfit. She flushed again, for a different reason. "Ahh…I better make sure that this finds its way back to my mother." She folded it many many times and set it away, getting back to the task at hand. Finally, after several more minutes of fruitless searching, she finally came upon something that would work.

"Guess this'll do." She held out her sons' cyan colored sparring outfit, and then slipped it on. The top was sleeveless, with a large V shape opening in the front exposing large amount of chest, but she didn't have to worry too much about showing anything off. _"Not anymore."_ She sighed. She tightened up the orange sash that held up the pants, and then slipped some socks on. Finishing up, she strapped on some yellow boots that were a couple sizes too large, and looked in a mirror. She couldn't help but smile, then giggle at the reflection.

"Hehe, I look almost like Trunks in this. Glad to know where he got his good looks from." Her smile broadened a bit. Then she sighed, as she remembered what she used to look like not all that long ago. "Well, with the Dragonballs we can set things right again." Her confidence boosted, she walked out of the room…although not before grabbing her mothers' 'special' party outfit.

Vegeta looked up as Bulma came downstairs. His upper lip twitched a bit at her choice of outfit. _"Humph, that's what took her so long to come to? She could have just grabbed some of the Saiyan armor we have and have been done with this long ago."_

"For your information Vegeta, that armor is ugly, and I don't look good in spandex!" He would have laughed at the tone in her young voice, if not for the fact that one, they were going to fix whatever it was that was wrong; two he sure as hell didn't have anywhere else to live. Finally, as much as he wouldn't admit it aloud, much less himself, he did love her. Unfortunately for him though, he kept forgetting about the mental bond he shared with her. 

"Common, we have to go get Gohan and see how they are doing. Videl must be half insane by now." ChiChi had told them of the incident that had happened the night of Bulma's drastic change. _ "Why's this happening to just us women? What did we do to deserve this?"_

Growling slightly, he ground out, "Fine. Let's just get this over with!" He stalked over to where she stood, hands on her hips. He bent down and gently cradled her small form, then walked outside. Reaching an open area, he blasted off in the direction of Goku's home.

**_Speaking of which…_**

"Rrrrrr…come'er you sexy thing you!" 

After Gohan had brought Videl to his home, ChiChi had to make trips for food far more often, and bring back much larger amounts than before. Gohan cared for his girlfriend while she recovered, and by the next day she had been back to her usual self…well, almost. For one thing, she was several times stronger and faster than before. Another, which Gohan considered odd, was the fact that her tail grew back by the next day, increasing her strength and speed a bit more. Neither things were bad things.

The final side effect of this though…

A table flew through the air, creating a dent in the wall as Videl tossed it aside in her chase with Gohan.

The other side effect was an abnormally high sex drive. She managed to control it when ChiChi was around, but she wasn't there at this particular moment…something Gohan was desperately wishing for. _ "Ohmanohmanohman…notgoodnotgood!"_ He flipped over several other items of furniture in his attempts to escape. Videl simply vaulted over them. Her eyes were hungry, almost primal in her desires. 

"Control yourself Videl! Mom will be back any minute!" Gohan offered as he flipped again. Much as he desired her, this wasn't the time or the place. Although it was obvious that she thought different.

"I don't care! I've gotta have ya!" She vaulted, and watched as he flipped yet again. "Yea…shake it baby!" He flushed.

_"What the hell…she's like those black widow spiders I read about! Dad never told me about this! He just told me about birds and bees!"_ He idly wondered if it was something that affected Saiyan women only or not, but wasn't ready to let Videl catch him to find out. 

They crouched apart from one another, Videl on top of a sofa, looking ready to pounce, her new tail swishing this way and that, while Gohan stood a few feet away in a near combat stance. "Common baby, ya know you wanna do it." She smiled, much like a predator who had caught its' prey. His eyes narrowed when her muscles tensed. When she leapt he was ready. A blur marked the spot he had been standing, reappearing above her stretched out form. He landed a blow to her neck, knocking her into unconsciousness. 

Her body landed much as a sack of wheat would, hard and heavy. He gently picked her up and placed her back on the sofa she had just so recently left, and then proceeded to straighten things up…again. 

"This is the third time today…I'll be glad when we get the Dragonballs together and set things right again." Gohan said aloud, sighing heavily. He didn't notice the predatory smile slowly appear on Videls' lips when he gently covered her with a blanket.

To be continued…

  
  
  



	11. Chapter 10: A little fun before we go

**_DBZR 1/2_**

**_Chapter 10: A little fun before we go..._**

Rushing through the air with a visible air cushion around them, her blue hair flying about as if possessed with life of its own, Vegeta and Bulma flew towards the Mountain district that Goku and his family lived at. As much as Vegeta hated being around Goku, he didn't have the same feelings towards Gohan or the rest of the family, although ChiChi got on his nerves a bit. He glanced at his much younger looking mate, of which only in Arkansas would it be a legal pairing, at the way her eyes appeared to be slightly glazed over. Whether from sadness, or from thinking on how to solve the problem, he wasn't certain. Never was with women though. He felt her smallish body shiver slightly, and he automatically drew her a little closer. 

_"Why am I always being tortured? Have I not repaid for my past enough yet?"_ He thought to himself, in a way that Bulma couldn't pick up through their bond. 

It didn't take Vegeta long to reach Goku's home. He could have flown there in his sleep if he'd been so inclined. All his dreams and desires of coming there to fight him to finally prove who was the better fighter had imprinted the location well into his brain. For the time being though, he was past that. From the sky the domed home looked small and quaint. Some would say it was…cozy. It wasn't his cup of tea though. He preferred complete solitude, away from all living beings. It was a partial reason as to why he spent so much time in the gravity chamber. It allowed him to be free, alone with his thoughts. Just him and his fists, pushing himself as far as he could possibly go, forcing his body to become stronger by sheer force of will. However, he had long realized that he couldn't possibly match the natural fighting ability of Goku. How he had managed it, Vegeta wasn't certain, but it humiliated him that he, the Saiyan Prince, destined to be the strongest warrior of all Saiyans, couldn't compete with a lower class fighter, no matter how hard he tried. 

Pushing those thoughts aside, he brought Bulma and himself to land a few feet from the doorway to the small home. Before he set Bulma down though, he sensed something from within the house.

"What's this I sense?" He asked aloud. Bulma looked up in confusion. "What? What is it Vegeta?"

"Hush." He shushed her. From the home he could feel a turmoil boiling from within. It seemed…lustful. Instantly he realized what was up. Setting Bulma down gently, he strode to the door purposely. Not even bothering to knock he pushed the door aside, only to see Videl straddling Gohan with her tail wrapped around his waist. He was trying to pry her off, but it seemed useless, as was proven by the fact that she had torn the top portion of his clothing off. For his sake he had managed to keep her from getting much further, but it appeared to be a loosing battle. 

Rushing into action, Vegeta clamped an iron hand on Videls neck, with the thumb and forefinger grasping just under her cerebral cortex. Instantly, her body slackened, and Gohan managed to pry himself loose. For her part she hung limply from Vegeta's hand, and sat limply on the couch when he released her. 

Breathing heavily, Gohan managed to ask, "What did you do?"

Vegeta ignored the question, asking one by way of reply, "What happened? How did she get to entrap you?" He looked at the teen dispassionately.

Gohan explain about the problem that Videl seemed to be having in his presence. He mentioned about how, for the third time, she had attempted to get him in bed…or anywhere else for that matter, how he had subdued her, and about covering her with a blanket when she had struck again, this time successful.

Vegeta snorted. "She is at the peak of a female Saiyans mating cycle. She can't control her actions anymore than you can control your sweat." Gohan audibly gulped.

"Sooo…how do I stop it?" Vegeta, unable to stop himself, burst out laughing. Gohan blushed, realizing how stupid a question it was.

"For all those books you read, you would think you would know the quickest way to put an end to a sex drive." Vegeta smirked, "You release the energy, just like a over pressured steam valve. And she will find a way, or she would have had I not stopped her."

"What did you do?

"To calm her down, you have to use a specific submission hold, otherwise you will simply enflame her even more than she already is." Videl still hadn't stirred during the speech.

"By fighting her, you had unwittingly been increasing her desire. A female Saiyan seeks a strong mate, and the one that defeats her advances is the one she will pursue, no matter how many times you defeat her." Vegeta shook his head. "Needless to say, knowing the hold is the best way short of sex to keep your woman controlled." Without asking, Vegeta quickly showed Gohan how to pull the hold off, and had him show it back to him a few times to make sure he knew. Videl slowly began to stir again as Gohan practiced, looking up as if for the first time after a long sleep.

Bulma watched from Goten's chair off to the side as the lesson quickly finished. "Gohan, has Goku returned yet?" She asked when it was concluded.

"Oh, hey Bulma. No, he hasn't come back yet." Gohan responded.

"Do you think he's still on Earth?" She asked.

Vegeta spoke up first. "No, he's not here. Nor is Trunks or Goten." 

"Do you think they're dead?" She said, with a small amount of fear in her stomach.

Both fighters thought for a moment, and then shook their head. "Nah, I don't think so Bulma. I don't sense anyone strong enough to fight Dad, Goten and Trunks off."

"Well, that's a relief I guess." She stood up, although the ball of fear in her gut didn't go away completely. 

From outside a voice could be heard, calling out, "Goku…Gohan, you guys home?" 

"That's Tien!" Gohan rushed outside, but stopped short at the doorway. Unable to control himself, he broke out laughing. Bulma, Vegeta and Videl simply looked on in bewilderment as Gohan slowly lost the ability to stand, laughing as hard as he was.

"Go ahead Gohan, laugh it up." Tien's voice was closer this time. Gohan leaned against the door as Tien stepped over him, still laughing. The others simply looked on in shock. Tien looked more or less the same…not counting the new floor-length red and white candy stripped hair that had sprung from his head. Unable to stop themselves Bulma and Videl both broke up into laughter, although not nearly as hard as Gohan's. Vegeta merely smirked and slightly chuckled. "Nice hair." He said.

"Yea, tell me about it." Tien rolled his three eyes. "I don't even know how I got this. I go to sleep, and the next morning I have it." He shook his head, swishing his new hair this way and that.

Regaining control of her laughter, Bulma squeaked out, "Ahh ha ha…let's…ha…let's hope that the Dragonball's will be able to ah…return you to…" She lost control again, holding her small sides. Tien merely blinked in surprise at Bulma's new appearance. 

"What happened to her?" He asked aloud. 

"Don't know Tien." Gohan had finally stopped laughing and now stood next to his old friend. "Now what happened to Videl. She's now a Saiyan."

Tien blinked. "Say what?"

"Yea, she's a Saiyan now. Not sure why either." Gohan's eyebrows knit together in frustration. 

"The sooner we get the Dragonballs together, the sooner we can get back to normal." Vegeta's gruff voice put things back into perspective. He spoke with an authoritative voice, a voice that, while knowing he wasn't in charge, that it was highly recommended that he follow his suggestion, post haste.

All nodded in agreement. Before they could move, the phone rang. Gohan answered it, then turned to the others, "Hey guys, it's Krillin." For several minutes he talked back and forth with his former sparring partner, then set the phone back on the receiver.

"What is it?" Bulma asked.

"Something happened to Krillin too." Gohan said wearily. "He didn't tell me what though. He suggested collecting the Dragonballs up at the Lookout, out of the way of prying eyes." Eyebrows cocked up at this. While a good suggestion, they hadn't been worried about people seeing the Dragon in years. 

"I wonder what happened to him?" Bulma asked, pondering. "He's not bald anymore, so it can't be that." She decided that whatever had happened, best to just wait until they actually seen him. Her imagination was too good at thinking up some rather horrible things that could have happened, and she didn't want to think of them anymore.

"Gohan, I'll give you the radar so you can start searching. We'll head to the lookout and see what Dende has to say on what's going on."

"Right." Gohan took the radar, clicked the little button on it's top to find the location of the nearest magical ball, and, after changing into a non-ruining outfit, took off at high speed for it.

Tien and Videl flew ahead while Vegeta once again carried Bulma, flying towards the home of the Guardian of the Earth, Dende. High in the sky, almost beyond the reach of aircraft, a bowl shaped structure seemed to float, giving the Guardian a perfect place to gaze down upon the Earth and see all that happened. The Lookout. 

**************************

**_Ranma's Dimension…….._**

After clearing out the gang, Goku, Akane and Ranma went back to training. Nibiki took the boys out on her promised outing on the town. Kasumi continued her seemingly endless job of cleaning house, which she took in stride well, even with the busted window and new lawn and sidewalk decorations, namely, Copycat Ken and Dan.

Ryoga and Cologne also watched the training as Goku continued to show them how to fly, or at least attempt to teach them. Ranma grasped the concept quickly, but hadn't attempted to fly yet, waiting to see if Akane would. Lacking knowledge in advanced energy techniques, or much of any energy techniques other than bringing out her aura, so it was more of a struggle for her.

"It really isn't as difficult as you're making it. Now, again…take the energy within, and bring it out so that you are lifting yourself." Goku instructed, fists on his hips. Akane panted, uniform plastered to her heaving body as she sweat, having brought out her energy many times since after lunch, but had yet to get it down. _"I'll learn this even if it kills me!"_ She swore to herself. 

Goku thought for a moment, then brightened. "Here, let's start with the basics first." He sat down, and motioned for both to do the same. From the porch Cologne sipped on some tea while Ryoga merely watched, soaking all in. 

"A question." Cologne said to Ryoga. He turned slightly to face her. "You spoke of your cousin being a fool. Much as your family matters aren't my concern, I have to admit that I was curious as to why." She sipped her cup again.

Ryoga snorted as he thought back into his family history. Surprising that it wasn't as lost as he usually was. He began…

"Dan Hibiki came from a part of the family that didn't suffer from my little…problem. It was a good family, strong in the martial arts. But his father went up against the wrong fighter. A monster named Sagat." 

Cologne actually shuddered, and Ryoga noticed. "You know him?"

"Yes. Even the tribe knew of the Muy Tai champion from Thailand. He actually came to us early in his career. It was one of our warriors who took his eye. He killed her with one blow after that." She shuddered again. "We had to let him go…he was too dangerous and powerful for us."

Ryoga looked at her skeptically. "Come on…you're a Grandmaster, you should have been able to…" he was cut off by her hushed outburst.

"It **was** a grandmaster who took his eye! And still he killed her instantly, before she knew what hit her. He had been toying with her, which is why we let him go. All the techniques in the world wouldn't have stopped him." She shuddered from the memory.

Ryoga just gazed as this normally unflappable old woman actually shuddered from fear. He continued, "Well, Sagat killed Dan's father. Dan swore revenge, and left everything behind as he went out and created his own martial art. But it's a dumb art! All he's really good at is at insulting. We figure he'll go the way of his father if he isn't careful. As much as the family respects his decision to get revenge, he could have at least learned something that would have worked!" Ryoga shook his head in frustration. 

"He was beating Son-in-Law." Cologne pointed out.

"Yea right. I know better." He spat in reply. Cologne nodded to herself, knowing the truth as well.

Goku cupped his hands from where he was seating, holding them in front of his chest. "Ok, first, you must become completely calm. Then you listen to the center of your body, until you feel a pull. When you start to feel the pull, that is when you bring it out." As he spoke he put words into action, and a tiny little pinprick of light formed in the middle of the space between his hands. As she watched the ball grew in size, with small rays of light shining here and there. Ranma and Akane gazed on in wonder. This was a far different way to learn how to channel energy than they had ever heard. 

Goku relaxed on his concentration, and the small sphere went out. "Ok, now you both try."

His two pupils quickly bent to the task 

Ranma calmed himself, feeling for his energy. His hands cupped like Goku's had been in front of him, he gazed at them with unseeing eyes, his sight turned inwards. He felt the pull quickly, and slowly brought it out as instructed. A tiny pinprick of light formed, and then expanded into a small sphere. A small warble could be heard as he gazed in surprise at his feat, but quickly suppressed it, allowing himself to remain calm so he could see how long he could hold it.

"That's great Ranma!" Goku said. Ryoga, from where he was, wasn't surprised. Both fighters had known how to handle energy for a good long while now.

Akane wasn't having near as much luck though. Her muscles were tense, cramped up as she tried to force the energy within her out between her hands. She knew how to bring out her aura, but it appeared that she was slightly mistaken when she told Goten that she knew how to bring out her energy.

Goku noticed the struggle, and said sternly, "No Akane. You're trying much to hard. You have to be calm. Listen to your center, then bring it out." Akane forced herself to calm down, with considerable effort, and tried again. After a couple of minutes she felt something pull within her, and she increased her concentration, determined to bring it out. Her hands glowed ever so slightly, as she started to get the feel down of her energy. Slowly, a tiny pinprick could be seen, and then the same small sphere that Ranma held floated between her hands, warbling just the same as his. 

"Excellent Akane!" Goku cried, smiling.

"Wow…not bad Akane." Ranma said, genuinely impressed.

Her heart soared, but then she lost concentration, and the sphere faded. She looked at her hands, saying, "I…I really did it!"

Ranma let the sphere in his hands go away, and looked to Goku. "So, we ready to fly?"

"I think so." He stood, and they followed.

"Ok, now, find your center." Goku instructed. "Once you find it, bring it out, and then push up with it." He stood silent for a moment, and the wind picked up slightly, wafting their hair around. Slowly he rose from the ground, till his feet hung limply a foot from the grass, his arms crossed.

Both Ranma and Akane concentrated, feeling for their centers. Ranma found it first. The wind picked up again, and is small circles around his feet the grass blew away from him. Slowly, ever so slowly, he started to rise from the ground, perspiration on his forehead. He continued to rise slowly, his tunic fluttering slightly, until he floated at Goku's level. Akane kept herself calm, keeping the jealousy at bay, as she sought out her center. The wind around her started to pick up, and the grass began to blow away from her feet. Even slower than Ranma, she began to rise, until finally, a couple minutes after Ranma had begun to float, she floated at the same level as the other two. Sweat poured from the teens faces, and finally they lowered themselves back to the ground. 

Goku merely smiled, and remained floating. "Very good you two." He said. 

A voice from the porch called out, "Goku!"

"Hm?" He turned in the direction of the voice. Nabiki, Goten and Trunks had returned. It had been Trunks who spoke.

"There's a martial arts competition going on tomorrow. Think we can go?" He asked.

"A competition? What kind?" Ranma asked. 

"A Martial Arts Techno Rave competition." Nabiki answered, uninterested.

"Techno Rave? What's that?" Akane asked aloud. No one really had an answer.

Ranma asked, "What's in it for the winner?"

Nabiki came alive, her eyes flashing slightly, "It's an American held competition, so they're paying in dollars. About $100,000 for first place, and $50,000 dollars for second, and $10,000 for third."

Kasumi walked out with some cold drinks, saying, "We really could use some of that. Even third place would be nice."

Goku, Goten and Trunks didn't understand the monetary terms…just that a lot of money was offered. Goku smirked slightly, still floating. "Sounds like fun. Maybe we should enter?"

Goten and Trunks both cried out, "Yea!" They were bored.

Ranma shrugged, his hands in his pockets, "Eh, why not?" Akane smirked at him, "I'll bet I'll beat you."

"Ha! You wish." Ranma said confidently. 

Before the argument could go further, from outside a thunderous voice cried out, "Akane my tigress! I, Takewaki Kuno, the Blue Thunder of Furikan High come to free you from the evil clutches of that dark magician Saotome!" A new person rounded the corner. He was a tall teen, with a mop of unruly dark hair, wearing what appeared to be a kendoists tunic of a loose fitting blue top, and large dark blue flowing bottoms. His feet were in white socks, in snug fitting sandals, and in his hand he grasped a wooden sword, a bokken. 

Ranma groaned, "Not now Kuno." Akane also groaned. She wasn't in the mood for his theatrics anymore than the others.

Trunks perked up at what was in Kunos' hand. "Hey…what's that?" He asks. Kuno looks at the boy, just noticing him for the first time.

"This is the honorable weapon of the samurai, the bokken. And who are you that you stand in the land of my tigress Akane?" He pointed the sword at Trunks, whose sword was still up against the wall where he left it earlier in the day. He glared at the sword, and then swatted it aside. 

"You dare to touch the sword of Kuno? Apparently you don't know who you are in the presence of!" 

Trunks slumped slightly, saying, "Ok, tell me who you are." His body though, told a different story, one of complete disinterest. Kuno though didn't hear that message.

"I am the master of the Kuno family, Champion Kendoist of the Furikan High Kendo Club. I am…" He poses dramatically, with sword upraised, "…the Blue Thunder of Furikan High!" A bolt of lighting flashes, even though there isn't a cloud in the sky. Goku starts, dropping to the ground in his surprise. He looks about the sky looking for the source of the lighting, while Kuno continues.

"Now, knave, answer me! Or fear the might of my wrath." The bokken pointed at Trunks face again. Now Trunks eyebrows knitted angrily, and he swatted the weapon away again before answering in a formal tone that he rarely used.

"I'm Trunks Briefs, son of Vegeta, Prince of all Saiyans, and Bulma Briefs, President of Capsule Corporation." He held out a hand, and Goten tossed his sword to him. Trunks caught it and in one smooth motion latched it around his body, his jacket he left on the porch. His black T-shirt left his arms bare. He continued, "I am a lot stronger than you, and if you stick that thing in my face again, I'll prove it." He smirked much like his father did, his arms crossed over his chest.

"So, you challenge the Blue Thunder? Very well, I shall set aside my duel with the demon Saotome, and accept your challenge. En Gaurde!" He held the bokken in a two handed grip in front of his body. 

**_To be continued…_**

Heheh…I'm so evil sometimes. 

^_^

BTW...if you wish to be emailed about an update, make sure you put your email in a review, or just email me. 

¤§¤ RBL_M1A2Tanker

  
  
  



	12. Chapter 11: Crossover

_***Authors Note:** I apologize for the super long delay in new content. I was detained by a nefarious computer that had decided for three weeks it wasn't going to play with me anymore (curse those nefarious creatures…) and on top of that had parts supplier problems, and to top if off college and preparing for my eventual move to another university has bogged me down badly. But my system is up and running (sooo sweet!), so this 'shouldn't' happen again for a good long while._

To reward you for your patience, I'm making this especially long (course I said that with my Soldier story and I ended up with three chapters…hmmm) during my Spring Break. 

Also, I'm trying out a new idea, where a writer does a crossover with two stories that the writer has written. So for a little while I'll be crossing over for a bit my Self-Insertion story, A Soldier in Tokyo with this story. Tell me what you think on how it turns out, and I hope I don't loose to many of you (it'll help if you read A Soldier in Tokyo first before continuing, it'll help keep things straight for you). If you chose to read the other story first, be forewarned, it's not for the faint of heart (or to be more precise, for those who can't handle swearing) but trust me, it'll be worth it for you to read that one if just to follow the two temporary new character additions to this story.

I must also thank the two (out of five) beta readers who took the time to not only read my first rough draft, but to make comments and suggestions on it as well. Thank you very much, your comments and suggestions were very helpful, and helped get me to refocus. 

My apologies again, and Enjoy! And the word for today boys and girls…is…nefarious. -_^

**¤§¤  
RBL_M1A2Tanker**

DBZR1/2

Chapter 11: Crossover

At the moment that Kuno had taken up his stance, three other people walked around the corner of the house; a 5'6 redheaded male, a slightly taller dark-skinned man of Mid-East descent, and a blue-haired young woman.

For the time being the new arrivals went unnoticed as Kuno and Trunks faced off. Kuno held his bokken in a ready position before him, while Trunks merely had his arms crossed, a superior smirk on his face.

"Come now. You have been challenged. Do you not draw your blade in preparation for battle?" Kuno taunted.

His smirk a little wider, Trunks replied, "Oh I'll draw it soon enough you overblown windbag."

"You dare to insult the great Takewaki Kuno? You shall feel my vengence fully for this!" With that Kuno charged, his wooden blade seeming to he a hundred at once, blurring at the high speed he swung. 

From the near the corner the Middle Easterner let out a whistle and mumbled something, to which his redheaded companion shushed him. 

The sound of wood on metal reverberated throughout the dojo as Trunks deftly pulled his sword and blocked with the flat of his blade. With one hand on the hilt and the other on the opposite flat side Trunks deflected the bokken away to the side.

As suddenly as he attacked, he pulled back, nodding in silent admiration. "I must say I'm impressed. No one has withstood my prowess with a blade before." Ranma and Akane's eyebrows rose at this, while Trunks just smirked, holding the blade flat side out.

"And you used the flat of your blade too. Your skill is indeed admirable. But mine shall triumph! Yatayatayata!" Again Kuno attacked, hundreds of blades again, all blocked again. The smirk on Trunks face never faded the whole time. 

"Fight me knave! I shall vanquish you for the honor of Akane Tendo!" 

Ranma rolled his eyes as he mumbled, "Oh brother." Goku scratched his head, eyebrow raised slightly in confusion. From the corner of the house, the redhead could be seen shaking his head and mumbling something, to which his companion nodded and replied. The young girl just looked on in an awestruck silence.

Apparently, Trunks had enough of Kuno's antics. "You just don't get it do you?" 

Kuno pulled back, bokken at the ready as he said dumbly, "Eh? What's that? You speak in riddles?" Most everyone in the area slapped a hand to their face in frustration while Trunks responded.

"You idiot! I'm blocking everything you throw at me, how much more proof that you need that you can't beat me?" He held the sword in the same postion as before, although held high in response to the last slice before Kuno backed away. From the side Ranma muttered under his breath, "A lot more than that I'm afraid."

"You cower in fear of my prowess! That is why you cannot strike!" He laughed loudly, his eyes seeming to take on an insane look as Trunks looked at him dumbly.

"You're such a fool Kuno." The red-head muttered as he shook his head. "Well, was nice knowing you." He figured that maybe if Trunks killed him, maybe the world would be saved of his stupidity. One can hope anyways.

Once again, Trunks seemed to be following the same track as the red-head. "You are so stupid! What do I have to do? Kill you before you get the picture?" Kuno shook his head mightly.

"Your skill is great, yet in the face of champion such as I. Nay, you cannot possibly kill me!"

"Wanna bet?" With that Trunks changed his grip on the blade from being pointed with the point down and flat side out, to the point up and the flat in. He came made a small jump, covering the distance between the two fighters, blades whirling quickly. A sheen of sweat could be seen on the kendoists face as he discovered that he'd vastly underestimated his opponent, barely able to parry the strikes in time. 

"I see you were holding out on me. Fear not my tigress! I shall defeat this foolish child who dares to face me!" The words sounded hollow though as he continued to step back, slowly backing up nearby where the new arrivals stood. It was then that the others noticed them, but they didn't say anything, since it seemed Trunks had everything under control. 

_"Tank? What's he doing…oh yea!"_ Ranma reminded himself that he had training to do with the red-headed out-of-place soldier, and a match with his partner. He berated himself mentally for forgetting that today was the day they'd planned on it when Trunks spoke up, breaking up his thoughts.

"Heh, that's what you think. I'm still holding out on you. And now, it's time to end this." With that, Trunks slipped his blade into his scabbard, and side-kicked Kuno the rest of the way to the concrete wall, leaving a Kuno-sized imprint in it. He brushed his hands off, saying, "Well, that's that." He started to walk away, when he heard a weak voice.

"Nay…you…have not…bested me!" He turned around, and saw that the man had managed to pull himself out of the wall and take up a stance again. Kuno charged, going to power where skill and technique had failed, slicing hard at the point where Trunks' neck and head joined. Trunks ducked, and the blade missed easily. 

For his troubles, he was punched this time back into the wall. Trunks shook his head, and turned away, only to hear….

"Face me you coward! You cannot defeat…the mighty Blue Thunder!" A crash of thunder fills the air, causing Goku to launch himself into the sky and see if he could figure out where the source of thunder was coming from. Trunks turned back once again, this time incredulous. 

"Man! What does it take to get through your thick head?" The young lad charged his opponent, sending him to the wall a third, and he hoped, final time. He waited a couple minutes as Kuno seemed to stare back blankly.

"Sheesh. He's hard-headed." Trunks muttered, then turned away and started to take a step when he heard….

"Nay…the Blue…Thunder," Yet another crash of thunder, "…is…not…beaten!" Goku landed, scratching his head madly, having been unable to find the source of the strange thunder. Kuno was battered and bruised, holding the bokken almost limply, yet once again out of the wall and standing…sorta tall. He gazed almost blankly at his opponent. Or was it opponents now? _"Do my eyes deceive me? There are three of them now! Surely he believes that numbers will finish me where skill did not!" _ Kuno analyized, quite incorrectly.

"This shall finish all three of you!" He cried, although he really couldn't see his target anymore, even as he brought back the blade and swung with all his might.

Would have been one hell of a blow too, if it had hit. However, his aim was so far off, he didn't notice that Trunks was a good five feet further away than his blade could reach. However, Tank and his companions weren't.

"Down!" He yelled, diving for the dirt while his friend tackled the girl. The blade just barely missed, and Kuno spun around once before he got his footing back, wobbling slightly. 

Tank was angry now. He stood up, yelling tersly, "You stupid ass! You nearly hit three non-combatants! What kind of honorable fighter do you believe yourself to be?"

The slightly out of it Kuno turned in the direction of the voice, not recognizing it off the bat, and retorted, "This is none of your concern. Now be gone with you, I shall deal with you after I have finished my opponent. My prowess cannot go unchallenged!" 

Furious, Tank stomped towards the fool, fists clenching and unclenching, muttering rapidly, "I'm going to kill him. I'm really going to kill him. This man must die. He mustn't be allowed to taint the gene pool in anyway shape or form." He muttered many other things, many of them that would curl the hair of a grizzled sailor as he closed in on the man who now was possibly as good as dead. He could hear some other voices from outside his vision, but he was locked on Kuno. 

Alarmed, Ranma started to charge forward to stop him when he saw Tanks male companion shake his head emphatically. He almost looked afraid. Or maybe it was more anticipation for what was going to happen? Beside him Goku saw the look as well, but was going to put a stop to it anyways, when Kuno, still a bit punch drunk, saw the looming presence approach and swung at it. Trunks saw the swing starting and had just stepped off into his leap when Tank responded.

No one, that is, no one but the Siayans, were quite certain afterwards just what happened next. They didn't tell either as they were watching what happened.

Things seemed to slow down at that moment in time. In a smooth, fluid motion, Tank ducked below the rushing blade, feeling the breeze pass just over him as the blade barely clipped his hair. As deftly and as naturally as if he'd been doing it all his life, he pulled the cylinder off his belt and pressed the small plate on it, and a blue-white blade ignited from the tip with a snap-hiss, slicing the bokken neatly in half before Kuno had finished his swing. 

Tank, still lowered, pushed off the ground, leapt over the Kendoist, and did a spinning roundhouse kick into his kidneys, sending him into the wall yet again. Kuno hit so hard that he actually bounced off, allowing Trunks to have a cushiony airbag when he arrived a moment later, sending Kuno back into the wall a final time.

The rest of the wooden blade finally fell the ground.

Time sped back up, as Tank glared at the highly imbedded and quite out cold Blue Thunder, breathing deeply, trying to cool down. His muscles in his back and arms were knots of steel, and refused to yield at first, and then slowly they finally uncoiled, as his temper started to abate. The lightsaber in his hands hummed away, forgotten for the moment.

Ranma, Ryoga and Akane were surprised. "How…he…wha…" That was all their minds could process at the moment. They'd trained with the older man before, but he'd never done anything like that. Tank was a relative newcomer to the martial arts world, and while he was catching on quickly in skill and ability, what he'd done was a lot more than was expected of him. _"That was almost as quick as me."_ Ranma thought to himself, wondering how the older man had improved so much in only a couple days.

Nabiki, camera clicking away, was smiling deviously. _"I'm making a killing today!" _ Was her thought…well, besides the obvious Yen signs and how many of them she'd get off of the sound thrashing Kuno had received today.

Kasumi numbly said, "Oh…my." And she went back inside. 

Cologne, Goku, Trunks and Goten just looked at the redhead, whose eyes were still flashing slightly as he cooled off. 

Cologne looked at him with narrowed eyes. _"Hmmm, such skill in one so obviously new to the Arts is rare. And that weapon…in all my long years I have never seen such a thing."_ She came to a conclusion. _"I must be watchful of him. I should have been paying more attention as he and Son-in-Law trained, but it's too late for that now. He could be a threat."_

_"Wow…that was neat!"_ Goten thought excitedly. _"I've never seen a light sword before. I wonder if he'll let me try it?"_ He looked at the man for a moment, but then sighed heavily, _"No, not right now. He doesn't seem too happy. Maybe later." _ He brightened up a bit at that.

Tank finally seemed to notice their stares, and gazed back. Some of them turned away, so intense was his gaze. He waited a couple moments till he trusted his ability to speak, shutting down the saber as he waited. "Sorry everyone. I just can't stand a arrogance, or stupid stuff." Some of the others thought a moment, then decided to go along with it. 

"Excuse me buddy…but I have to cool off a sec. I'll be right back." Tank tossed to his friend, and then jumped up and over the wall to… 'cool-off'. 

Silence filled the area as everyone processed what happened. Finally, Goku asked, "Ahh…shouldn't we do something about him?" He pointed to the still imbedded Kuno.

That snapped everyone out of their thoughts as Akane and Ranma, along with Tanks friends went over and pulled the Broken Black and Blue Thunder of Furikan High out of the wall. Ranma turned to the guy, picking up that he was strong, and asked, "Who are you?"

The other man looked up from checking Kunos' injuries and stared blankly, as if remembering what he was there for, before replying, "I'm Barsoum. Who're you?" 

"Ranma Saotome." Barsoums' face broke out in a grin. 

"Oh yea? You're the guy who's been training Tank?" Barsoum finished checking Kuno over, while Cologne bounced over to poke and prod here and there.

Ranma nodded as he replied, "Yup. You're his sparring partner?" A nod.

Cologne finished up, saying, "This is all that we can do for him. He'll be fine in a few days, but for now he'll have to let his body rest." 

The others nodded, when Goku walked up to them. Bending down, he gently picked up the beaten seventeen year old and brought him inside to lay him on the futon. 

Outside Ranma and Barsoum were looking each other over, sizing their opponent up when a shadow leapt over the wall. They glanced up and saw Tank just before he landed, much calmer than before. 

"Hey man…where'd you go?" Barsoum asked, while Ranma said, somewhat wryly, "What did you do?"

"Don't know, and nothing, on both counts." He answered as he walked up to them. He looked at Akane, noticing the still slightly blondish bangs and cocked his head. "What's with the hair?" He asked.

Akane sighed, "It's a long story."

"Only gets shorter by telling it." Tank retorted. 

"The same could go for you you know." Ranma shot back. 

"Whaddya mean?" Tank blinked, confused. Barsoum answered before Ranma could.

"I think he means whatcha just did dude." Ranma frowned a bit, but nodded.

Tank sighed himself, and stepped over to the porch to sit. "No long story there. I just don't know. It was like…instinct at work. Before I had thought to do something, I'd done it." He looked up, shrugging, genuenly at a loss. Cologne sat perched on her cane, staring down with her piercing stare while Ranma and Barsoum both probed.

While they were talking, Akane walked over to the nearly forgotten young woman, and asked, "And who're you? Are you a friend of his?"

The girl turned to Akane, thinking a moment. "Well…yes and no. I really don't know him that well, we just met a short while ago." Akane laughed a short laugh. 

"Yea, me too. What's your name?" 

"Ami Mizuno." 

"Akane Tendo. Pleased to meet you." 

"Likewise." They smiled at each other when Tank called to them.

"Hey Ami? You don't have to stay if you don't want to." 

Before she could respond, Akane interjected, "Why not? This is our place, not yours after all." She really didn't get along too well with the man, but that was natural. She didn't get along with men in general, so he took it in stride, more-or-less.

Tank sighed, "I could be a real pain here, but I've done that already to Kuno. Not that he didn't deserve it, but still." Most of the Nerima residents couldn't find any argument to that. "Point is, you're correct, yet I was allowed to bring one other person with me. A little rude of me to bring more people when they weren't expected, don't you think?"

Akane pondered that, finding that he had a point of his own. She decided to ignore it though. "Well, she's here now isn't she?"

Ami, stuck on the sidelines, finally managed to jump in before a full-blown argument ensued. "That's ok. I only followed here to talk over some things with him." She turned to the still seated ex-soldier. "If you don't mind, I'd like to meet you in a couple days, at the usual place, if that's ok with you?"

Tank thought, and then nodded. "Works for me. I'll see you then."

"Right." Ami smiled amicably, bowed to everyone else, and made her exit.

Goku came out from inside, with Kasumi in tow, saying, "He'll be asleep for a good long time I think." To his surprise Tank stood and bowed slightly to him. 

"Ahh…thanks, but you didn't have to bow to me." He said, chuckling a bit as he scratched his head.

"Actually, I was bowing to Kasumi. My apologies for earlier." Tank covered for his little lapse easily enough. Kasumi blushed a bit, saying, "That's quite alright."

Barsoum wrapped an arm around his companion, saying, "Would you excuse us a sec?" He yanked Tank away before anyone could answer.

****

* ** * * * *

"What was that about? I thought you said we couldn't hit on the Tendos?" Barsoum hissed. "You trying to keep them all for yourself or something?"

Tank frowned, but didn't struggle out of the grip. "No man! I goofed, and bowed to Goku when I wasn't thinking. I told ya we can't mess with the timeline. You think I'm crazy?"

"Yes. Especially after what you did earlier. And when are you ever thinking?" 

Tank grimaced, "Look, I really don't know what happened there!" 

"Why didn't you tell me that was a God da-.." Tank interrupted with a harsh, "Not now man! Right now we have a match and some training to do! And with DBZ folks here, we better get what we can!"

Barsoum sighed, letting go in acceptance. "Alright. But don't pull that again alright? Kinda scared me a bit."

Tank looked at him in surprise. "You? Scared? Yea right. You're the one who was chasing a squirrel after all."

Barsoum grinned slightly, "Ok, so I wasn't. But the squirrel thing was just crazy, not scary anyways."

Tank pondered, and then conceded the point as they went back to the others.

** * * * * * * **

"So who's that guy?" Goku asked as the two were speaking in hushed tones.

"He's a foreign exchange student from America. He comes here to train every couple days. I'd forgotten that today was the day we'd train." Ranma answered. 

"Oh, that's great. He's not bad. Still a little rough, but he's got potential!" Goku said. Goten and Trunks could only nod, while Cologne kept her comments to herself, although they were along the same lines as Gokus'. 

Ranma took that moment to point out, "He's only been training a few months. He didn't have much experience before he came to me." The Saiyans looked at him, somewhat surprised.

"You mean that he's that good after only a few months?" 

Ranma nodded. "Yup. Although what he did today was…"

"Different." Ryoga spoke up. They looked at him as he continued. "I've fought with him before, and while he was decent, he wasn't a match then. But…that was only about a week ago." 

He turned away from looking at the subject of the conversation and at them. "If he'd fought then like he did now against Kuno, I'm not sure who'd have won." 

"Oh common Ryoga. You'd have taken him, I'm sure of it." Ranma said, positive about it.

The Lost Boy turned to him. "Tell me Saotome, do you think you'd have beaten him if he could do that before?" Ranma opened his mouth to speak, then stopped.

"He's right Son-in-Law. His rage was so great, it's hard to say just what he would have done in battle." Cologne said wisely. 

At that moment the other two returned, and the conversation was dropped for the time being.

From the pond Genma just bubbled, still out cold. 

A rather large amount of that going around lately it seemed. 

** **************

_In the DBZ world…_

Gohan was searching high and low for the Dragonballs, while the rest of the gang gathered at the Lookout, hoping that they would be safe there.

Weeeeell….safe from attack maybe. Safe from ludicrous staring though…that's another story.

Vegeta, Tien, Bulma and Videl all just looked on in shock at the changes that had come across both Krillin and 18…and they looked back at them, as shocked as they were at the changes that had come across them. 

Krillin still had the full head of black hair, and the same face. Only difference was that now, instead of being a five-foot tall, toned man, he was a six-foot tall, very beefy man. And he spoke with a deeper voice in an odd Austrian accent. 18 had gone from being a petite blonde, to…well...still petite but… 

Lara Croft comes to mind when describing her new 'attributes.' This really was an understatement due to her breasts being at least one or two sizes larger than before. She had much greater bounce in her bust than she used to, and even with a very strained sports bra on, they still moved about more of less of their own accord. _"I always thought I was a little on the small side, but this is ridiculous! I'm going to have to change my whole wardrobe if this becomes permanent. I can't go around like this!" _ She self-consciously pulled her trademark black shirt down, unable to tuck it in for obvious reasons, so it showed off her flat stomach a bit.

Naturally, Master Roshi had been the first to notice the changes between the two. He should be landing somewhere in the general vicinity of Siberia anytime now. Granted, she had been under a state of undue stress and undress, but she felt she did a pretty good job in restraining herself from killing the old lecher outright.

"Look," Krillin started to explain, his shirt barely covering the now rippling muscles. Course his clothing in general barely covered him, made for a much shorter and smaller man after all. "We were just having a little fun, and I said something about how I was going to pump her up, and next thing we both knew, ahhh…I had." He couldn't help but smack his meaty hands together on the 'pump' part. 18 blushed slightly in response. 

Tien couldn't help but laugh as he asked, "Do you often pretend to be Arnold?" 

"Shaddap there candystripe." Krillin fired off, killing Tien's smile instantly. It was a little hard for him to forget the new hairstyle he had, as he had to brush it out of his face several times. They had tried to cut it, but the stuff just grew back in mere moments. 

Piccolo walked out, with Dende and Mr. Popo following. They'd been appraised of what had been going on for awhile now, but seeing the changes in person had been a little distressing to the three normal residents. They'd had a little time to recover though, and took Krillin and 18's arrival and appearance in stride.

Dende addressed them, "Don't worry, Gohan will be back soon with the Dragonballs, and we'll be able to set things right. I hope." 

Vegeta turned towards the Guardian sharply. "What do you mean, 'you hope'?" He strode purposefully towards the young Namek, who didn't back away, but became far more anxious. Not that he could be blamed, not with a half-cocked Saiyan closing in. 

"Well, you see…there's someone who's more powerful than me who's doing this." He explained.

It was less than Vegeta wanted to hear. With no real effort, he transformed into a Super Saiyan, the wind blowing away from him. "Who is this person? I'll force him to change everything back!" He yelled, the glow around him intense. 

Bulma couldn't help but toss out, "Right before you destroy him right?"

"Exactly." Vegeta said matter-of-factly. 

"There's really nothing we can do Vegeta." Piccolo spoke up for the first time. "This being is able to cause changes here in our dimension, but is safe from retaliation because he's in another dimension of his own." 

Grunting with some frustration, Vegeta calmed himself, relaxing from being a Super Saiyan. Most everyone's blood pressure dropped as well, as Dende continued to explain. 

"Shenlong is powerful yes, but whether he has the power to undo a higher God's power…" He shrugged. "It's really too hard to tell without actually asking the dragon."

"Where's Kakarot then? Where did he go?" Vegeta asked, arms crossed.

"He managed to find out where the boys went, and, using the Instant Transmission, was able to go where they were. Which just so happened to be…"

"In another dimension, right?" Bulma finished. Dende nodded. "So we have to wait for him to return then." Another nod.

"It'll take Gohan some time to find all the Dragonballs, even with the radar." Krillin pointed out, to which no one could disagree. 

"Guess we'll just have to wait for Goku and Gohan to get back, and we can set things straight again." Bulma surmised, still feeling a little self-conscious about her age…or lack of it. 

Again, no one could disagree.

**To be continued…**


	13. Chapter 12: Ranma vs Barsoum

**__**

DBZR1/2

Chapter 12: Ranma VS. Barsoum

**_At the Dojo…_**

"So, we ready to fight?" Barsoum cracked his knuckles, stretching out and basically warming up. 

Ranma, having been fighting most of the day, was already stretched out and warmed up, so he simply nodded, taking up his trademark stance opposite the American-Egyptian. From the porch sat Goku, Tank, Cologne, Ryoga and Akane. Soun had dragged Genma inside, still out cold, while Kasumi made drinks. Nabiki left not long after Kuno had been knocked out, mumbling something about 'pictures' and 'fortune' or some-such-or-other. Goten and Trunks had decided to take a nap for awhile, at least until it was time to eat.

Cologne watched with some interest at Ranmas' opponent. He was someone she'd never seen before, but he was just as confident as Ranma was. His stance showed great skill and practice as he went into it with ease, twisting his head this way and that to loosen up his neck.

Akane turned to Goku, asking, "Who do you think will win?" Goku pursed his lips, contemplating for a moment before he made his decision. 

"It's too close to call." He said. "Ranma has more energy, but this guy doesn't look like a pushover. There's also something strange about his energy…but I can't place it." He glanced at Tank. "It's not like yours either. It's something…different." 

Tank turned to look at the Saiyan, asking, "What about my energy?" 

Goku scratched the back of his head, "Well…it's nothing I've ever felt before really. You're pretty strong for being new to the martial arts, but what I felt earlier…it's something completely different." 

Tank cocked an eyebrow, and then shrugged, deciding to file the comment away for later thought, as Barsoum and Ranma took a few jabs at each other, testing. 

"He's not half-bad." Ranma surmised. "This could be quite fun." He smiled slightly in anticipation.

"Let's see how you smile when we really get into it kid." Barsoum thought, looking forward to a much higher class of competition than Tank had been able to give.

"Ready?" Barsoum asked, eyes narrowing.

Ranma nodded, saying simply, "Go."

Ranma charged quickly, going in for a crescent kick, but faking it and hitting Barsoum with a snap instead. It connected with his right forearm, short of Ranma's target. Barsoum then pivoted and fired a hard punch with his left, which was blocked, to be countered by shuto strike. Barsoum ducked it, going for a foot sweep, tripping the pig-tailed fighter down to the ground. Barsoum followed it up with a strike at Ranma's temple, but it missed at the last second as the cursed martial artist rolled away and rose, snapping off a quick roundhouse kick, forcing his opponent to back away for just a moment. The older man bounced around on the balls of his feet as Ranma came in with a flying kick, but was caught in mid-air and thrown to the ground. Ranma rolled onto his back, launching himself backwards onto his feet, once again in stance, now openly smiling. 

"You're a lot better than I thought." He said. 

Barsoum smiled slightly back. "So are you." Round two began following that quick break.

For nearly thirty minutes the two fought, neither really gaining an edge over the other as they used all the normal techniques they knew. Every so often, they'd score a hit on each other, but neither one had more hits than the other. 

"This has been fun and all, but it's time I pulled out some of the more advanced techniques." Ranma backed away, avoiding a side-kick at just the last moment. "This had been one of the better workouts I've had in a long while. But it's time to end it."

"My thoughts exactly. Let's go!" Barsoum hopped around , changing his feet position several times, as well as where his arms hung. 

"Alright, here I come! Kachu Tenshien Amaguriken!" Ranma launched his Chestnut Fist attack, fully expecting to drill the foreigner and end the fight. 

Much to his surprise, his punches didn't seem to even touch his opponent! "What!?" He cried out in surprise, then flew backwards from a direct hit to his solar plexus. 

He held the spot for a moment, slightly winded as Barsoum asked, "Surprised? You're not the only one with special tricks you know." Ranma chuckled. 

"Ok…guess I underestimated you. But I'll get you this time!" He came in again, throwing his punches even faster than before, yet as before, none connected. Barsoum just looked at him with a smile.

"You can do that all day man. Won't faze me." This time Ranma flew backwards from a hard kick to his gut, knocking all the wind from him.

_"Man! Why isn't the Chestnut Fist working? Why can't I touch him._" He grunted with some effort, and then jumped back up onto his feet, closing in the blink of an eye and acted as if he was going to punch again, but kicked instead. He felt the leg touch Barsoum's blocking arm, and he instantly pulled out the Chestnut Fist attack as a follow-up. 

This time, he felt a couple of his hits actually touch Barsoum, before once again passing through his form as if he wasn't there. They pulled apart, panting slightly.

"Nice one." The older man said, bowing slightly in respect. Ranma bowed in return. 

"Pretty good trick you have there, phasing in and out. Never seen that technique before."

Barsoum shrugged. "Something I created on my own. But you haven't seen my best tricks."

Before Ranma could respond in kind, Tank called out, "Maybe later man. We still have other training to do." He walked over towards the two fighters, and said wryly towards his friend. "Still think he'd be a pushover?" 

Barsoum shrugged. "Ok, you didn't lie. He's pretty good." He turned back towards Ranma, and held out a hand. "That was really fun. You moves are pretty polished. I can see why Tank has been improving." 

Ranma took it, saying, "So are yours. We'll have to finish this when we have more time." Barsoum nodded as Goku, Ryoga and Akane walked up.

"Great match you guys!" Goku said. "Those were some really good moves. I couldn't tell who would win the whole time!" Barsoum did a little "Awww, shucks," in a very poorly done hillbilly accent, causing everyone to break out in laughter a bit.

Akane turned to her fiancé, and said, somewhat crossly, "I hope you saved some for tonight." 

"Tonight?" Both Barsoum and Tank asked, glancing at each other. 

"Yea, tonight we're going to a Martial Arts Techno Rave Competition." At this both men scratched their heads.

"How the hell do you have a martial arts contest as part of a rave?" Tank asked aloud. Barsoum shook his head, at a loss.

Akane and Ranma asked together, "You know what it is?" 

The two men shrugged, as Tank replied, "Well…I know what a Rave is. It's where they play computerized music at a dance club for hundreds of folks to dance too. There are hundreds of different types of Techno music, but for a Rave I think they play the really fast-paced stuff. Hardcore, Jungle, things like that." 

Everyone around him, except Barsoum, was lost. This fact wasn't misplaced on Tank, so he pulled out a necklace with some tags on it. He slowly swung it back and forth as he explained.

"See, regular music goes at a steady beat. The stuff you hear on the radio might have a beat that goes about this fast, like maybe thirty to at most sixty beats per minute. Now Hardcore or Jungle…it goes as fast if not faster than this." His hand almost against the tags, he swung the chain back and forth as quickly as he could. "Hardcore and Jungle goes as fast as one-hundred and forty beats per minute, and sometimes faster. Excellent dance music if you're a fast paced dancer."

Barsoum broke everyone attention away from the tags as he said, "Bet that's what they'll play then for the competition." Tank nodded, and the others could see the logic in that. 

Well…all except Goku. "You mean we have to dance? Or fight?"

Tank shrugged. "Guess both." 

Goku groaned, "Man…this is confusing." He chuckled a bit, his hand on the back of his head.

Ranma turned back to Tank, asking, "How about it? There's cash prizes for the winners."

Both men perked up, a cash register ringing almost audibly. "How much?" They asked simultaneously. 

Nabiki called out, almost as if reciting a poem. "It's an American held competition, so they're paying in dollars. About $100,000 for first place, and $50,000 dollars for second, and $10,000 for third."

When the figures were bouncing around in their heads for but a second, they both exclaimed, "I'm in!"

"Great! This should be fun!" Goku exclaimed.

The rest nodded, and then Ryoga asked, "Goku, how about we do some more training?"

Goku smiled broadly. "You bet!" And with two new students, they all began doing more work on energy usage.

From the porch Cologne just looked at Barsoum and Tank with sharp eyes. "Those two are hiding more than they let on. There is no such technique that lets an opponents attack to pass through you. If there is, then I shall have to acquire it for the tribe." She nodded her head sagely, and then thought, "It'll have to be done after I return from sealing Goku's world from Toltir. Then, with my stronger Shampoo, it should be no problem to get the technique from the young man." She smiled slightly while watching the group train.

****

_Later on the day….._

"Oooooh! Why can't I get this down!" Akane nearly cried in frustration. She'd been trying to get flying down on her own in private, but hadn't had anymore luck than she had earlier in the day. Granted, she still rose a few feet, but it still wasn't flying.

"I will finally beat Ranma at something!" She vowed, feeling her body tense up at the mere thought of beating Ranma. She could feel her aura slowly form around her, to which she cursed herself. "It's easy enough to bring out my energy for that. Why couldn't I do that for flying?" She calmed, seeing her aura die back down, when it struck her.

"Wait…Goku said that you take your energy and push down with it." She rubbed her lips a moment in thought, processing the tentative idea she had slowly. "It should work. I think." She looked up at her window, determined to test her theory.

In moments she was on the roof, feeling the breeze blow her gi about slightly. Her blondish bangs fluttered slightly, while she concentrated on her aura. She felt the golden-blue aura come to life around her, and at that moment she grasped the power, pushing down with all her will. 

Her will was sufficed to say, quite strong, to which she found out herself in short order as she hurtled at high speed into the air. Her initial cries of surprise turned to cheers of joy, as she found herself hovering several hundred feet over her house. 

"Finally! I beat Ranma!" She cried, nearly delirious in her joy, to the point that she almost didn't notice that she was falling.

"Oh no!" She cried, concentrating again, stopping her falling body just a few feet from the roof. She breathed a sigh of relief, when a voice behind her said, "Getting better Akane." 

She dropped the last couple feet, concentration lost from the surprise. When she looked behind her, Ranma leaned out his window, smirking slightly.

Frowning, she asked, "What do you want?" 

"Nothin. Kasumi just wanted me to tell you that dinner would be ready soon. We'll leave for the contest afterwards." 

"Fine. I'll be down after a bit." She responded, a bit harshly.

Ranma cocked his head slightly, and then shrugged as he left, not sure what she was upset about this time. It's not like he saw anything for her to be upset about this time. She was only practicing on flying, and she'd only gotten a couple feet higher from what he saw when he got up there. _"I'll never figure her out."_ He sighed to himself.

Akane though, was far from upset. She was ecstatic, but didn't want to ruin the surprise just yet. 

She smiled a slightly wicked smile. "I'll give you the biggest surprise you've ever had Ranma."

****

To be continued…


	14. Chapter 13: Heading for the competition

_**DBZR1/2**_

Chapter 13: Heading for the competition. 

Dusk slowly settled across Nerima, throwing shadows across the buildings and people as they walked about in the cool summer air. Streetlamps clicked on automatically, and lights inside people's homes were turned on. 

On the streets, people walked about, some with nowhere to go, others heading out early as part of the nightlife. One large group was part of the latter, heading deeper into the city. Nabiki lead the way, with Goten and Trunks beside her, and Ranma, Goku, Akane, Tank, Barsoum, and Ryoga trailing behind. 

Ranma turned to Tank. "So what will we actually have to do?" 

"Why you asking me?" 

"We have a deal, remember?" Ranma reminded Tank of the deal they had made. In order for Tank to get training from Ranma, he had to promise that he'd give any information he knew, which, since he came from a different world (although only Ranma and Nabiki knew that) like Goku, he knew a lot.

Unfortunately… "Well, I can honestly tell you I haven't a clue. Never heard of anything like this back home." 

Ranma grunted, still curious, but resigned to the fact that he'd have to learn about it the same time everyone else did. 

Goku looked about, curious about everything they passed, when Tank called out, "Hang on a sec guys…" And he disappeared into a shop for a few moments, to return with several short plastic tubes, filled with a dull liquid. He started to pass a couple out to each person, even Nabiki, saying, "You guys might want these."

"What for?" Ryoga said incredulously. Tank simply smiled back cheerfully.

"You'll see. Just hang on to them till we get in." He stashed the last few into his pocket, and they continued on, making idle small talk until they came up to a tall, concrete building, with a long line outside, waiting for the place to open. A large neon sign announced to all that it was the Club Electric, although the 'L' on the Club flickered, changing the name to 'Cub' Electric. Above the double doors was a white banner, announcing the location of the Martial Arts Techno Rave Competition, hosted by…

"Ken Masters?" Tank muttered, surprised. 

"You know him?" Nabiki asked. 

"I just know he's a wealthy guy, and a top-notch martial artist in the Shotokan Karate form." Ranma and Ryoga both perked up at the mention of the very hard-hitting Karate art, while Nabiki's eyes glittered almost deviously. "More likely with ideas on getting into the wealthy man's pockets." Tank thought, shaking his head.

The doors opened, and the line slowly started to move forward, then split into two lines, one for fighter registration, and the other for folks just coming to the club for a good time. 

As the Nerima/Z Fighter group closed in on the desk, they could hear the slightly bored registration mans voice. "Pay 1000 yen, sign your name, your style of fighting, wait till you get stamped and then you may go into the club." 

"Huh, there are a few fighters here." Goku noticed as he scanned the line. Ranma shrugged, not really interested as they moved forward. 

"Probably has more to do with Masters name than the money, although they might be here for the money. Hard to say really." Tank thought aloud.

"Doesn't matter, it'll make this more interesting." Barsoum said, slightly absently as he gazed at those of the fairer sex, somewhat longingly. Tank smacked his buddy, who quickly shot back, "Hey! It's a club! Why do you think they come here dressed like that for?" 

Tank flushed slightly, having forgotten about things like that. Barsoum shook his head as he said, "You don't get out enough man."

"Tell me about it." He muttered as Trunks and Goten came up to the desk.

Again, the man at the desk said in a bored tone, "Pay 1000 yen, sign your name, your style of fighting, wait untilllllllhey wait a minute!" The man jumped up on his feet, finally noticing that it was two kids standing before him. "You can't go in and fight!"

The two kids looked at each other, then the man, saying together, "Why not?"

"Well…wha…" He blubbered about, floundering for a moment before finally saying, "You're children!" 

"Uh huh!" Goten said cheerfully, as Trunks tossed out, "So?"

"Well…ah…er…" He shifted through his little rulebook, and didn't find anything that kept kids out, and sighed, defeated. "Ok, fine. Pay your money, sign, yada yada." Nabiki paid for them, and finished the form, which the man read over carefully.

"Hmm, Trunks and Goten. Fusion style fighting?" He shook his head, muttering, "Don't you know what martial arts style you do?" 

"Well, yea." Trunks answered. "That's it. But we've never done this before."

"Do tell." He said dryly. He gestured to his aide, and they both got a stamp on their hands as he called, "Next!"

Ranma paid, filled out the form. The man just sighed at the age of the pig-tailed fighter, feeling that the world was out to make his life harder than it already was as Ranma got his stamp.

"Next!"

"Akane Tendo…age 16." He sighed, and waved her on.

"Next!"

"Ryoga Hibiki. Age 16?" He growled slightly. Ryoga growled back. 

"Next!"

Barsoum walked up with a slight swagger, asking, "You guys have any Tupac in this club tonight?" 

The doorman shook his head madly. "No no no no. No Tupac."

"Well why the hell not!" Barsoum said indignantly, hands on his hips. 

"Because that is not techno music!" He shot back.

Barsoum cursed under his breath, before finally saying, "Fine." He filled out the form.

The man smacked himself on the forehead as he read the style of fighting, which Barsoum happened to write down in Arabic, before calling, "Next!"

"Tank?" The man thought for a moment. "Just what kind of name is that? You sure don't look like a tank."

Tank leaned forward slightly, and in a low voice said, "That's because I drive a tank. Care for me to drive it through the door here?"

"Ahh…no. Not really." The man gulped, realizing that he needed to learn to keep his big mouth shut once in awhile. 

Tank straightened, smiling cheerfully. "Good. Here's my fee." He handed the money over. He got a stamp in return, and walked in.

"Next!"

"Goku." The man read the form, happy to finally have an older man at his desk. He couldn't possibly be a problem compared to the others. "Uh, you forgot to put down your style of fighting." 

"Huh? Where's that?" 

"Right here sir." The man pointed. 

"Oh. Well…I really don't have any particular style of fighting anymore." Goku chuckled slightly, scratching the back of his head.

The man pounded his head into the table.

*** * * * * **

Not long after, everyone was gathered around the fighting ring, having been given a fighting slot automatically as they entered the competition, although there was a little switching around as fighters entered. Trunks and Goten vs. a fighter named Joe Higashi, Ranma vs. a young man named Kenneth, Ryoga vs. a girl named Sakura, Barsoum vs. Tank, Goku vs. a wrestler named Zangief, Ken Masters vs. a man named the Spitting Cobra, and at least a dozen other fighters. 

In the shadows of a balcony, a powerfully built man with pupil less eyes watched from under the brim of his large military style hat. "This has to be one of your ideas Geese." 

Beside him, a tall blonde headed man, wearing a business suit and with a vicious scar running across an eye smirked. "No. I had nothing to do with this. This is all Ken Masters doing."

The other man grunted. "I have more important things to do than to follow a strange street fight, even if Ken Masters is here. I have no use for him." 

"Please Bison, stay and keep me company then. I'm told that this should be an interesting competition, even if the whole music thing is a waste of time." 

The head of Shadowlaw looked at the King of Southtown. "And what makes you so sure that there is anything here of interest to me?" 

"Well, I can tell you that the girl named Sakura is close to Ryu. She'll be fighting here tonight, thinking she'll get closer to him this way." Geese turned to face Bison. "Also, there just might be some good fighters here for your little purposes."

Bison settled his powerful body into his chair, his only cue of his acceptance of Geese's point. His voice rumbled slightly, a hint of threat in it, "This had better be worth my time." 

Geese just smiled, not really fearing the powerful crime lords' threat. 

*********

From deeper in the shadows on the ground floor, a being of great evil stood with his powerful arms crossed over his chest. He wore a dark colored gi, tattered at the ends and lacking sleeves. Instead of a regular rank belt, he wore a simple rope to hold his top closed, and a string of large beads around his neck. His eyes glowed red and his red hair constantly seemed to move in the air. He had no real interest in the competition either, and under normal circumstances he wouldn't have even been in such a place. However, he'd felt an incredible power surge not long ago, followed by several more over the past several days. 

_"Finally, there may be one who can stand against me."_ Akuma's lips opened to reveal a row of jagged teeth in anticipation of a real battle. Anyone seeing his smile would have probably died of a heart attack, as his smile lacked all compassion and pleasantness. It was the smile of a hunter, who had smelled worthy prey.

His fights with Ryu and other street fighters had been lacking in challenge, although Ryu was the obvious heir to the Dark Hadou. In spite of that though, Ryu hadn't been able to defeat him, the Master of Fists.

Akuma rumbled slightly, feeling the strong presence of the warriors he'd been seeking. He looked over at the assembled fighters, looking for the ones he'd sensed, and locking in on Goku. "He is the one." He said aloud, feeling his blood boil from an excitement he hadn't felt in years. Now wasn't the time for action though. Now was a time to watch, and learn. The time for action would show itself to him soon.

However, he couldn't remove the smile from his lips. 

**************

From his chair, Toltir watched in amusement. "Well now…this is very interesting. This should be quite fun to watch." He snapped a finger, and a servant brought over a goblet. 

The god thanked him, and took a pill for his strange head-cold he'd been dealing with for awhile now. "I hate these colds…makes me act like a jerk." He'd have to talk to the Gods physician and see if they could figure out a way to get rid of such annoying thing, although rumor had it L-sama liked to create little bugs to annoy the gods below him.

Toltir sighed, and returned his attention to the DBZ world. "I wonder what else I can do here though?" He giggled slightly, unable to control himself. 

**************

****

To be continued…Next time, the competition begins, sinister beings watch from the sidelines, more changes are at hand in the DBZ world, and finally….the return of Goku to his dimension, with some hitchhikers.


	15. Chapter 14: Techno Battle? Ready…GO! ...

_**DBZR1/2**_

****

_Chapter 14: Techno Battle? Ready….GO! Part 1_

As fighting rings go, it wasn't exactly impressive. Nor was it overly elaborate. It was a simple, flat, raised teak hardwood dance floor with elastic ropes encircling it on its perimeter. The whole first floor of the club was a dance floor, but this was the one where the more talented or excited dancers would get on to show off. A rectangular area had been roped off by the 'ring' for the fighters as a waiting space, while one of the men's restrooms played the part of a changing area if needed. Goku and the others stood next to the ring, checking out the place and their opponents.

"Hey Goten," Trunks yanked on his friend's tunic, then pointed, "Check him out." 

The man Trunks pointed at could be more accurately called a bear. He wore a red cloak about his hugely muscled frame, covering his body almost from head to toe. His feet were in huge red wrestlers boots. His face was in a constant scowl, or so it appeared with his scraggly beard and thick Mohawk on his head. He stared into space, waiting patiently for his turn. 

"He's big." Goten said obviously.   
"Yea. He's the guy that'll be fighting your dad."   
"Really?" Goten looked the big man over again. "He seems kinda strong. Should be fun to watch." Trunks nodded his ascent. Zangief glanced in their direction and growled slightly. The two boys looked away, attempting to be innocent. Zangief snorted, and then went back to his staring, not really caring who he fought. 

"So where's the guy we're fighting?" Goten asked, looking about.   
"Beats me. Who cares though? It's just going to end up being us versus your dad anyways." Trunks surmised, stretching his legs out a bit to loosen up.  
"Yea, but I still wanted to see him."  
"You'll get to see him soon enough son. You two go easy though, ok?" Goku asked, hunched over.   
"Sure." Trunks acknowledged, then went back to stretching.   
"Ok Dad." Goten said happily, joining his friend in stretching.

*******************

_**A little further away…**_

"Aww man. Why do I have to fight little kids?" Joe Higashi muttered, crossing his arms over his chest, gazing at his two young opponents. He stood with both his arms and his legs in white wraps, wearing nothing more than his red fighting boxer shorts and a bandana with the Japanese sun in the center. He rubbed a hand through his upright hair, continuing his ramble, "This is going to be embarrassing. The ladies don't dig a kid beater ya know." 

Beside him stood his old friend, who was also looking at Trunks and Goten. "Just the way it worked out Joe. I'd be careful though." The man known as Terry Bogard appraised the two, watching how easily they stretched and confident they stood. An American, he wore sneakers, blue jeans and a white T-shirt, with a worn red jacket lacking sleeves over that. His long blond hair was done up in a ponytail in back, hanging over a large white star on the jacket.

Joe picked up on the seriousness of Terry's tone, and gazed at his friend curiously. "Why's that? They don't seem all that tough to me." 

"Just watch them. See how they move?" Terry nodded towards them as they talked to the taller version of Goten. "They're not pushovers. There's something about them that's different." 

"How different?" 

"I'm not sure yet. Just be careful." Terry went to reach for the brim of his trademark red Fatal Fury ballcap when he found it wasn't there.

"What the…" He quickly looked about, only to find it being held between the fingers of the host of the competition, dressed in a well worn red karate gi, tattered on the shoulder ends where the sleeves used to be.

Terry chuckled, relaxing. "Well hello Masters. Looks like you found something of mine." 

Ken chuckled as well before replying, "You really should be more careful Bogard. Some punk kid managed to get it off your head when you weren't looking. The Lone Wolf shouldn't be without his hat, don't you think?" Ken shot his arm out, sending the cap spinning towards Terry, who caught it between his first two fingers of his gloved hand easily.

"I agree. Thanks for the assist." Terry pulled the hat down low over his eyes, and then shook Ken Masters hand. "I heard you're still competing, but I didn't know you were into this kinda music."

"I'm not." Ken replied, sweeping some of his blond bangs out of his eyes. "I'm just hosting this for a buddy. You know DeeJay?" 

"The dancing street fighter? Yea, I've heard of him. He's pretty good." 

"Yea, that's him. He's been putting up some competitions to help out kids in his neighborhood, and they've been taking off." Ken slipped on his yellow sparring gloves, tightening them up in preparation. He continued, "Anyways, he asked if I could help out and see about getting some more publicity. I was coming to Japan anyways, so I agreed. Unfortunately, the owners here got it into their head to add techno music, and I couldn't talk'em out of it." Ken shrugged.

"Heh, so what are we doing? Fighting or dancing?" Joe asked.

Ken held up his hands to forestall any further questions. "Just hang on a bit. I'll explain the rules here directly." He looked past the two men and gazed at the kids and the man with the strange hair and orange gi. 

"I see. So that's why that kid almost took off with your hat. You were checking those guys out." Terry and Joe nodded. Ken gazed at them, his expression unreadable as he felt them through their chi, or energy levels. 

"They're strong. They should make for some very good matches." Terry nodded, while Joe just looked at them dubiously. 

Ken looked at Terry and asked, "Are you competing?" 

Terry shook his head. "Nah, I think I'll watch this one out from the sidelines. Just here to be Joe's support." 

Joe smirked, "When you're as famous as me, you get all the support you need."

"Yup. You do need all the support you can get, especially to take you out of the ring." Terry quipped. Joe shot back a hurt expression. 

"You should go easy on him Terry. I don't want him to feel bad before I get to fight him." Ken quickly added, winking to his fellow American.

Joe's eye twitched slightly. Then he slowly raised an extended finger, shaking it slightly as he said, "You will pay for that Masters." 

"Oh, there's my cue! Excuse me fellas." With that Ken slipped past Joe and Terry, jumping up and slipping under the ropes of the ring before taking the microphone offered by one of the referees. 

"_Welcome everyone to the Martial Arts Techno Rave Competition! I am your host and fellow competitor Ken Masters and don't worry, you only have to fight. The music will be playing in the background as you fight but will really have no bearing on the conduct of the competition. Now for the rules. The rules are simple and straightforward."_ He paused for a moment before continuing. _"There is only one round per match. You win by either knock out, sending your opponent out of the ring, or if your opponent forfeits the match. There is no time limit, but then we're not expecting many of these fights to last long."_

There was some murmuring among the fighters and spectators. Ken continued, _"You all know the official amounts that the club is giving out. All the rest of the proceeds will go to charity. However there is a hidden winners prize. That will be announced at the conclusion of the competition."_

He turned serious for a moment. _ "This may be a charity competition, but it is a mostly no-holds barred fight. The only exceptions is that you may not use weapons, and you may not use killing blows. Failure to comply will get you kicked out, and may get you arrested, or so I've been warned."_ He motioned to the row of police officers who stood with batons at the ready.

_"And now, I'll hand this back to the referee, and we'll get started. Good luck everyone." _He tossed the microphone back and quickly leaped out of the ring. The referee pulled up his clipboard and called for the first fighters.

************************

**_In the balcony…_**

"I've had enough Geese. This has been a waste of my time." Bison rumbled. His body tensed up as he started to move when he heard the names of the fighters.

_"Trunks Briefs and Goten Son versus Joe Higashi. Please step into the ring." _Bison blinked several times, as did Geese, as they watched two young lads easily jump over the ropes and take up an equal distance apart in the ring. A bemused (or embarrassed, hard to tell at a distance) Japanese man parted the ropes and slid himself into place opposite of his opponents. 

_"What is it about those two children? Something feels different…maybe this will be more interesting than I thought." _ Bison thought as he relaxed back into his chair.

*******************

"Ready?" The ref pointed to Joe. He nodded. "Ready?" He asked again, this time pointing towards the kids. They nodded as well. "Go!" 

"Let's do it Trunks!" Goten yelled as loud, fast paced music filled the club.   
"Right! Fuuuuu." Trunks and Goten slid towards each other in the Fusion dance, arms extended. Joe, expecting an attack, had his arms upraised near his lowered head, balancing on one foot when they began the dance. 

"What are they doing?" He asked aloud, puzzled.

"Sion….HA!" A bright flash of light filled the arena, and when it passed a single boy stood in place of two. His black, purple streaked hair was upright, and he quickly spread his legs into a side horse stance, one arm high and the other low and against his body, both hands clawed. 

"Hi. I'm Gotenks. Let's begin." The boy said, smirking confidently. 

From the side, Goku sighed. "Oh man. This won't be good. I can just feel it." 

**_THUMTHUMTHUMTHUMTHUM _**

The techno music played on as onlookers danced and watched. Beside Goku, Tank called out, "Hey, Gotenks…activate your chem lights!" He held up his own, bending it till it a small crack was heard, and it began to glow brightly. He shook it a moment, increasing its glow, and then tied it down to an arm. The rest of the group caught on and did the same, putting them in various places on their bodies or outfits.

Gotenks blinked, and then quickly did as told, and soon had two chemical lights lit, one red, the other green, with both of them attached to his legs. "Ok. Well, shall we fight?"

Joe just shook his head. "Whatever kid. This is some weird stuff, but Joe Higashi doesn't back down. Let's go! **Smashing Kick!**" The Muy Thai kickboxer suddenly shot forward, his leg extended, nailing the fused Saiyan child direct in the chest. Gotenks reeled backwards a step or two, and then quickly took up stance again.

Joe smiled. "Nice kid. You're pretty strong to take that and keep going." 

"You haven't seen anything yet buddy. **Charging Bull attack!**" Gotenks put his first fingers to his forehead and charged Joe with one of his ridiculous attacks he made up against Majin Buu. Goku could only hang his head. 

Surprisingly, it worked. Joe didn't see it coming, and also reeled backwards several steps before firing off a quick kick, then followed with a flurry of punches. Gotenks retaliated with a flurry of punches of his own, while blocking the expertly timed kicks of Joe at the same time. 

A fast paced beat was keeping time with their motions, seeming to be in synch with the fighters as the two glow sticks on Gotenks legs left contrails behind them as he moved. 

_"This kid is good! I might have to go all out!"_ Joe thought to himself, while making no headway against the amazingly agile child. His eyes narrowed as he jumped backwards to make some distance.

Gotenks didn't follow, wanting to see what the guy had in mind. "I feel you charging your energy. What are you up to?" 

Indeed a bright orange glow surrounded the kickboxer, as his muscles gained in bulk. "The gloves are off. Let's see if you're strong enough to handle a…" A forearm suddenly seemed to ignite in flame as he charged forward, screaming, "**Screw Upper!**" A burning red cyclone flew towards a surprised Gotenks, hitting and sending him up high into the air.

"Aaah! Not again!" He cried out, more in annoyance than pain. "That's it! Ha!" A golden glow filled the club as Gotenks made a quick jump to Super Saiyan and dispelled the attack just as a particularly loud and fast paced beat cresendoed into a loud kettle drum **Boom!**

He landed none the worse for wear, and smirked confidently. "I hope that wasn't your best." He beckoned to the stunned Joe. 

From the sidelines Terry gazed in surprise. "This kid is a lot stronger than I thought. He's too strong for Joe. I'm almost positive of it."

************************

**_Balcony…_**

"Did you see that?" Geese said to noone in particular.  
"I did. I want that power." Bison said, laughing silently to himself as he thought of the possibilities he could have with that power. _ "That power might rival the great Akuma."_ Bison thought to himself, although he was doubtful that anyone could possibly touch that level. Not even he with the Psycho Drive was quite able to handle him. 

****************

**_The Shadows…_**

Akuma's grin was wider than ever. He almost couldn't keep himself contained, so enthused with the prospect of battle with someone with such obvious potential, and a child no less. He looked greatly forward to when the older man that was with them went into battle.

*************************

**_The Ring..._**

"Ok, this doesn't look too good for our hero." Joe still couldn't help but smile. "I really didn't expect to use this technique yet. But you're leaving me with no choice. Come on, come and see my newest, most advanced technique!" He concentrated as he beckoned, his energy forming a large aura around him.

Gotenks needed no more invitation than that. "Time to finish this!" With a blur Gotenks almost vanished. 

Almost.

The glow from the chemical lights was all that Joe needed as a warning. He ducked down low, arms tighter than concrete as flames covered both. Gotenks appeared directly above Joe, arm extended and missing by a mile. 

"Wha…" 

"**Double Cyclone!**" Two cyclones of swirling red energy shot upwards, buffeting Gotenks and battering him high up into the ceiling. 

"What's with this place and tornadoes?!?! Enough is enough! **Hah!**" Again Gotenks went Super Saiyan, only this time he stayed there as his energy output quickly displaced and killed the double cyclones. Joe, in complete shock and exhaustion, dropped to his knees, gazing upwards at the Super Saiyan child.

"Impossible…that was my best attack." He muttered, when he felt a sudden breeze in front of him pass his sweaty face. He looked down to see Gotenks directly in front of him, his cyan eyes almost laughing as he smirked. 

"Not bad guy. But you're done." With a quick backhanded swing Joe was quickly knocked to the side of the ring, and the referee counted up to 15. Terry rushed over and helped slide the unconscious kickboxer out of the ring. 

"Joe? Joe, you alright?" 

"_First round goes to…ahh…the boy!_" The ref finally said, announcing the winner. 

Just a little more than three minutes had passed. 

Joe's eyes fluttered, then opened slightly. "Wha…what happened? I didn't even see the punch." 

"Just take it easy Joe. He got you with a backhand." 

"He…he backhanded…me? Sure doesn't…feel like it." With that Joe's eyes rolled up into his head. 

**********************

"You were right Geese. This is interesting indeed." Bison finally said aloud as they watched Gotenks, now back to normal, wave to the cheering spectators, the music still blaring. He quickly jumped out of the ring with the rest of the fighters, of which only a handful didn't back away. From his vantage point he could see several other fighters quickly forfeit their matches before they even got into the ring. 

"I want to know who they are." Bison ordered. Geese snapped his fingers, and a phone was placed into his hand. He spoke for only a moment, and then turned towards the Shadowlaw dictator. 

"Do you want to know all of them, or just the boy?" The King of Southtown asked.

"All of them that are around that boy. I don't care about the rest." Bison leaned forward to look at them all. At least three looked to be teens and the other three were adults, with the two…or is it one now?...boys rounding it out. 

"The list is being brought up as we speak." Geese said, also gazing at the group. He didn't care about the dictator's lust for power. He just wanted to know the techniques. Anything to defeat Terry Bogard.

**********************

Akuma's blood red eyes gazed at the group as well. He had finally managed to bring his chi level back down, reminding himself that this wasn't the time yet to engage in battle. He had felt the power surge, and knew there was more hidden than the boy had let on. This new knowledge he now used as he gauged Goku's power. He kept it hidden very well, but not nearly as well as the Master of Fists. 

_"There is no way he can hide all that power."_ He surmised. _ "He has enough energy to go to twice what the boy had. I can sense that both can go to more levels than that as well." _

His grin returned. "Either of them would be perfect. More than perfect." Akuma said aloud, taking deep breaths as he relished the thought of the incredible battle that will take place.

The question was…when.

**********************

Goku sighed, happy that things hadn't gotten out of hand as he feared. It wouldn't do to have Gotenks get carried away in a crowded place like this.   
"Good work." Goku said, patting Gotenks on the back.   
"Heh, it was easy." Gotenks boasted, laughing almost manaically.

Goku again sighed, and then shook his head. He was about to admonish him when he felt something…something pure evil. His gaze hardened and he quickly scanned the crowd, searching for the source of the evil energy. It passed quickly though, and hard as he tried, he couldn't lock in on it. He could still feel it, but it was very faint, as if it was being surpressed.

"Hmmm…" 

The others gazed at him. "Did you feel something?" Ranma asked, having felt something as well. He wasn't nearly as skilled when it came to detecting energy signatures though. Ryoga, Tank, Barsoum and Gotenks also had felt the energy surge, but were also in the dark as to what it was. Akane was just in the dark, much to her annoyance.

Goku nodded. "We're being watched, watched very closely. I can't find him though. This guy is shrewd." He crossed his arms, slightly frustrated yet excited at the same time. His gaze was still intent, but his face broke out into a slight smirk.

Gotenks looked up and saw the smirk, and had a little smirk of his own. "A challenge?" 

Goku didn't respond for moment, still searching. "Maybe. There are two others that are strong as well, up there in the balcony." Everyone in the group turned their gaze upwards to where he was pointing. They couldn't see anything though for the one-way mirror, but as they concentrated they could feel the strong energy of the occupants.

Tank shuddered slightly. "This is getting a bit strange. I'm beginning to feel like a frog in a jar." 

Barsoum cocked an eyebrow. "So? They want to watch, let them watch. I don't care."

Akane looked back and forth between speakers, then finally growled out, "What are you talking about? I don't see anything." 

"Don't worry Akane. It's probably nothing." Ranma shrugged it off, hiding the sense of foreboding he had.

************************

Bison frowned. "This is unexpected. How do they know anyone is up here?"

Geese waved it off. "Calm yourself Bison. This is the high-paying booth after all. They're probably just making some small talk." 

The Shadowlaw dictator faced the King of Southtown. "Somehow I doubt it. Where is that list?"

Geese turned to an aide who started to place it in his boss's outreached hand when it suddenly flew away and landed in Bison's grip. The scarred man angrily faced the impassive dictator. "There was no need for that. I was going to give it…" 

"Enough." Bison interrupted, shutting Geese up solidly. For his part Geese settled back into his chair, deciding to forget the rudeness for the time being. 

"Hmmm…Goku Son, Goten Son, Trunks Briefs, Tank, Barsoum, Ranma Saotome, Akane Tendo, and Ryoga Hibiki." He turned the names over in his mind, contemplating. _"I have no use for those teens, or with this 'Tank' and 'Barsoum.' But the other three…they could be useful. I shall watch them fight and see if this man, this 'Goku' is as powerful as his son."_ He was certain that the other Son was the child of Goku. The family resemblence was impossible to miss...at least when he was separate from the other boy. He nonchalantly tossed the list back to Geese, who deftly caught the clipboard.

*******************

_"Ladies and gentlemen," The ref called out to get everyone's attention. "Due to a sudden influx of forfeitures, we have re-arranged the fighting schedule. Our next match will be Goku Son versus Zangief. Would you please step into the ring?"_

"I'm up!" Goku said cheerfully, smashing his fists together, twisting his head this way and that to crack his neck and loosen it up. With a slight hop he cleared the ropes and landed in the middle of the ring. 

_**DOMDOM…..DOMDOM…..DOMDOM….DOMDOM**_

The music took a decidedly darker turn as it got deeper and somewhat slower. At that moment the Russian wrestler known as Zangief slid into the ring, still draped in his large red cloak.

"Whoa…you're a big guy." Goku muttered, rolling his shoulders around a bit. 

Zangief ignored the comment as he deftly undid the tie on his cloak, and then tossed it aside with a flourish. 

Goku blinked a couple times at the sight before him. "Guess he was bigger than I thought." Zangief practically towered over the 5'6" Goku. His burly chest had a splash of thick hair covering it almost in a star pattern. He wore a yellow belt over red trunks and that was pretty much all he had on, other than the boots. But then, it was doubtful he could wear normal clothing without costing an arm and a leg, so bulked up as he was from head to toe. 

He almost seemed to stalk into position, his gaze locked on Goku, who gazed back with a smirk. 

"This should be fun." Goku said as he took up a relaxed yet ready posture. Zangief hunkered down slightly, with his massive hands extended slightly, ready to grab and hurl anything.

"Ready? The ref pointed to Goku. He nodded. "Ready?" He pointed to Zangief. 

"I shall crush him." Zangief said gruffly. 

The ref gulped as he mumbled, "I'll take that as ready. Go!" He pratcially leapt out of the ring, just to make sure he wasn't the one crushed.

With a mad rush Zangief charged, arms outstretched, music speeding up with him. Before Goku knew it Zangief had him in a tremendous bear hug. 

"Wha…" Goku managed to get out before the Russian started one of his most powerful techniques. Shadows trailing behind him, he pulled a suplex, then another, driving Goku's head into the ring each time, contrails from the Saiyans' chem lights following. As Zangief moved his skin became redder and redder. With a quick flip Zangief tossed the Saiyan high into the air, then leapt after him, and grasped him into the hardest bear hug he could, arms and legs wrapped around Goku's body as he spun about faster and faster. 

"Eyah!" With a loud cry Zangief finished his attack, slamming Goku into the ring and bouncing away to land on his feet while Goku bounced over to the far side, face down. The ref rushed over and started the countdown, and reached 10 when Goku flipped onto his back, and then flipped himself unto his feet.

He twisted his head this way and that, cracking slightly. "Not bad." He smirked as he took up a stance again. Zangief took a deep breath in reply. 

"Let's do it!" Goku cried out as the music increased in tempo again. He charged the big Russian, lashing out in several lightning fast kicks and punches, which the big man managed to either deflect or take direct. Zangief countered Goku's next attack by grabbing him, jumping upwards and slamming the Saiyan down on the floor. Goku flipped back up, sweeping his opponent off his feet. Zangief managed to land and roll backwards, coming up in a crouch. Goku charged again, but was driven back by a swing from one of Zangiefs meaty arms. 

Zangief came up as Goku slid forward to land a hard punch to his solar plexus when the Russian cried out, "Eyah!" Spinning almost in place with his arms outstretched into large hard fists, he caught Goku by surprise, hitting him once, twice, three times before stopping. The Saiyan staggered backwards a bit, and then fired off a quick energy blast. Zangief countered by sidestepping and spinning about, a green ball of energy in an open fist. Goku's blast missed, but Zangief's backspin sent Goku reeling to the side to bounce off of the rings. 

Goku shook his head then looked at the big Russian who hadn't taken much in the way of damage. "I see you're not new to energy attacks." Goku chuckled.

Zangief nodded. "I am enjoying this greatly. You are putting up a good fight."  
"Thanks. So are you. Shall we finish this up?"   
The Russian nodded, ready.

Goku took up his trademark tiger stance quickly before vanishing with a blur. "Come on, hit me." Goku appeared in front of Zangief, who struck out, only to hit nothing but an afterimage, contrails from the glow sticks seeming to flow about in a circle around the big Russian.   
"No, over here." He swung again to the right, hitting another afterimage.   
"No no no, here." Another swing, this time left, missing again. In frustration he stuck a leg out, and was rewarded when he felt Goku's foot trip over it 

"I have you now little man!" He cried, grasping out in a bear hug…only to see Goku flip in mid fall and vanish again. "Where do you go? Fight like a man!" Zangief yelled as the music seemed to slow again. Just as the music played a loud bass boom, Zangief felt a tap on his back. He spun about, swinging a meaty fist as hard as possible, determined to take his opponents head off. 

Goku simply held up his hand and blocked the strike as if it was nothing. He smiled cheerfully, yet his gaze didn't weaken. Zangief pulled his fist back, preparing to try again when Goku's elbow suddenly appeared in his sternum, driving the wind out of his lungs and doubling him over. The ref cautiously came over and began the count. Zangief struggled a bit, but couldn't get his body to respond the way he wanted to, and wasn't' able to beat the count.

_"The winner of the second match is…Goku!"_ Goku raised his arms to the ceiling yelling, "Yeah! Ha Hah!" 

He turned back to his opponent, and stretched out a hand to help the big man up. Zangief glanced at it warily, then took it.   
"Those were some good moves you used. If you weren't quite so bulky you might have given me some more trouble than you did." Goku said with a smile.   
Zangief seemed to just glare at Goku, then finally broke out into a grin and laughed heartily. "You are a good man, and a great fighter Goku. I shall double my efforts."   
"You do that. Maybe we'll fight again some day." Goku said cheerfully.  
They clasped hands for a moment in a show of respect, then they both got off the ring so the next match could begin. 

Seven minutes had passed from the start of the match to the end.

**********************

**_The Shadows…_**

Akuma was much calmer now, and had anaylized the fight with a trained eye.   
_"He was playing with him. His assessment might have been correct, but he was never in any danger from that big oaf." _ Akuma had never wasted his time with the Russian, feeling he wouldn't have been much of a challenge. Having watched a demonstration of all the abilities that he had, Akuma felt he'd been justified. He may have taken a few hits, but in the end, the Master of Fists would have won. 

As usual.

_"I shall watch some more, but the time to battle is soon coming at hand."_ Akuma could feel his blood start to boil again, his skin becoming slightly darker as the Dark Hadou within demanded violence.

"Soon. Soon." He told himself.

**_To Be Continued……  
  
Part 2 will conclude the competition, with dark forces possibly intercepting Goku and his new friends from returning to his world, while Gohan discovers that finding the Dragonballs is still as dangerous as ever. Who knows what will happen though. Stay tuned..._**


	16. Chapter 14: Techno Battle? Ready,GO! Pt2

_****_

*Author's Note: I don't normally do responses to reviewers, but I felt I should do it just this once.  
  
**steven:** I appreciate your compliments, and have no fear. I shall continue this, no matter what it takes. ^_^  
  
**AnT:** Ooooh…we'll see what happens. I don't want to give anything away yet, but there's going to be some mayhem once again, very shortly. Methinks Goten and Trunks might be running into some other Nerima residents within the next few chapters. -_^  
  
**Peter Kim:** I appreciate you being a consistent reader and reviewer, but I would really, **REALLY** appreciate it more if you'd discontinue making the same 'suggestions' over and over. This isn't a radio station where you can request for your favorite song. I have no intention of bring Frieza or Zarbon, or any of those others back. No point bringing back the same old guys again and again, especially when that's been done ad nauseum in other stories.   
  
**Ssj goku:** Thanks. As I told steven, I'll be continuing this no matter what, so please check in when ya can, unless you want me to inform you when I update the story in email form. ^_^  
  
Well, I think I left you guys hanging long enough. Back to the battles!

****

~§~  
RBL_M1A2Tanker aka 'Tank'*

_**DBZR1/2**_

****

_Chapter 14: Techno Battle? Ready….GO! Part 2 _

_"Our next match is Ryoga Hibiki verses Sakura. Please step into the ring."_  
  
"My turn," Ryoga smirked, as he slipped past the other fighters and moved to the left.   
  
He'd gone a few paces when both Ranma and Akane cried out, "Hey idiot! The ring is that way!"   
  
"Eh?" He looked, and sure enough, the ring was behind him. "I knew that." He headed towards the ring...in the right direction this time.  
  
Ranma shook his head. "That guy should really get a compass or something."

In the ring stood a teenaged school girl, still in her school uniform, stretching. Her fists were covered by red sparring gloves, matching the collar of the red undershirt she wore. In her short brown hair a long white headband fluttered slightly about her as she moved. She fired off a couple punches and kicks as she waited for Ryoga to finally get into the ring.  
  
"I was hoping Ryu would be here." She muttered. "At this rate I'll never find him." Frustration ate at her. She was much stronger, she knew it. All she had to do was find the guy and prove it.  
  
"Oh well. At least if I win this I'll have some money to go back home with. Maybe I can even get a train ticket." She was ever hopeful for that. As much as running all over the place did for her stamina and body, it got old.

Ryoga finally got into the ring, opposite of Sakura. "I'll have you know that I won't go easy on you." He said, taking up stance.   
  
She smiled back prettily. "Cool! Maybe I won't have such an easy time beating you then!"   
  
Ryoga's eye twitched. "Easy? Easy!?!"   
  
The ref pointed to Sakura. "Ready?" She nodded her legs in a side horse stance with her arms raised near her chest at the ready. "Ready?"   
  
"I'll show you easy!" Ryoga charged at Sakura, forcing the ref to cry out as he attempted to escape, "Go!"   
  
"Bakusai…" He pulled his arm back, finger extended.   
  
"Hadou Ken!" A weak energy blast shot out, stopping Ryoga in his tracks.   
  
"You think such a weak attack will stop me?" He taunted.   
  
"Heh Hah!" Was the only reply he got as she did a wide overhead kick, bringing it up and over her head as she spun…and giving him an eyeful of her red panty covered rear from under her skirt. Blood started to gush instantly from his nose, but before he could do anything about it, the kick connected, sending him into the teak floor hard. The music was playing as fast as ever, possibly faster as it took on a more cheerful tone.   
  
She smiled pretty again. "Are you sure you're not going to be that easy?"   
  
An aura surrounded Ryoga as he picked himself up off the deck. "I'll show you…" He growled, grasping a stripped bandanna from his head and throwing it with all his might.   
  
"Whah!" She cried as she jumped out of the way, the two large ribbons on her uniform getting slashed. He threw another, than another, smirking the whole time. Part of her skirt took a gash from one while she managed to deflect the other with a glove, also getting slashed. She charged quickly and grasped him. She jumped up, still holding him, till her bottom was in front of his face (prompting another blood spurt), and then kicked out, sending him flying to the side of the ring.   
  
"That little...how dare she use my weakness against me!" He cried as he picked himself up again, turning and rushing towards her angrily. Before he could get in a strike though, she was spinning and moving forward, an arm and fist upraised. It hit once, twice, five times, sending him flying up towards the ceiling with the fifth strike.   
  
The music played, **_"We're flying high….we're flying right up to the stars… we fly so high…we're flying right up to the sky!"_** in a happy hardcore tune.   
  
How ironic…   
  
"**Shiiiinnnnnkuuuu…..**" Sakura started to chant, hands cupped beside her as Ryoga started to come back down. Small lighting bolts shimmered in her hands as a ball of energy formed. "**Haadoooo Ken!**" She shot her thin arms upwards, sending several large blasts of energy towards her target. Each one hit, sending him higher and higher, until finally her attack ended, sending him earthward once again.   
  
He landed hard outside the ring, his eyes glazed over in a daze, his legs tucked in, arms splayed out, fingers in the shape of horns, with the thumbs pointing to his head.   
  
_"And the winner is…Sakura!"_ The ref announced.   
  
"Heh, ha, Ha!" She kicked three times, with a single solitary shoe flying off, before taking up a low ready stance. The shoe landed on her head once before falling beside her.   
  
From the sidelines, Ranma muttered, "Man…Ryoga really got it that time."   
  
"I'll say." Akane agreed. She had changed to her gi a few minutes prior, ready to fight.   
  
"I wonder who's up next." Goku thought aloud, scratching his chin. In the ring, Sakura bowed briefly towards the prone Ryoga, gathered up her shoe, and quickly slipped out of the ring. The announcer glanced at his clipboard, and then picked up his mike.   
  
_"Our next match is Ken Masters verses Kenneth Feng." _   
  
"Who's Kenneth Feng?" Ranma asked, looking at Tank and Barsoum, who were busy having a conversation to the side. Tank heard and glanced over, shrugging.   
  
*****************************************   
  
_*Author's Note:_** The following fight scene (with a few tweaks by me) was submitted by Noctorro by request. I thank him greatly for adding a great piece to my story. Kenneth Feng is his original character, check out his adventures at Noctorros' FFN account.)   
  
"Woohoo, go Kenny!!" Sakura chanted from the sidelines with her hands cupped around her mouth. She raised a fist in the air and swung it round and round, as if she were punching an invisible speed punch bag.   
  
A spotlight (who knew where the hell that came from…) kicked on, revealing a lone figure standing in the bright beam. The figure walked forward calmly, small in stature but beaming with an unseen aura, as he waved excitedly to the crowd as they hollered and cheered. The music had for the moment stopped while the DJ worked on putting on a different CD.   
  
From a different corner of the holding area an identical spotlight ignited, revealing a blond figure smiling cockily, positioned in an intimidating stance with his muscular arms folded across a broad chest. He had a red karate uniform on, complete with belt and thick fingerless fighting gloves. He looked toward the arena, hesitating to take his first step onto the fighting platform before he could properly size up the opponent.   
  
And what an opponent he had to face. Standing at least half a head shorter than him was a small stature teen, barely considered to have passed puberty. Ken squinted a little, his eyes failing him as age caught up to him for a brief moment. He recognized the figure instantly …   
  
"Kenny!" Ken cried. His young namesake had already reached the battle platform, looking at him to hurry up and approach so that the fight could begin.   
  
"Uncle Ken!" the boy cried out waving excitedly. "Hurry up and get out here!"   
  
Ken scratched his head. They were about to fight, and he was about to kick the kid's ass. He didn't expect Kenny to be waving so happily to see him. "I'm on my way, kid," Ken said running towards the platform. "Don't think I'm gonna go all easy on ya just cause you're inexperienced. I know about that Shadow stuff you got in ya!"   
  
**_*Author's Note:_** If ya wish to know more about Kenny and this "Shadow stuff" please pay a visit to Noctorro's FFN account (I'm really doing great advertising for him here hehehe).*   
  
"Bring it on," Kenny said, grinning excitedly.   
  
Before the ref could even attempt to get back into the ring to start the fight, the two warriors were already going at it against each other, just as a high paced beat filled the slightly smoky air. Ken was the first to start his assault, beginning his chain of attacks with a fiery uppercut that smashed against Kenny's blocking forearms. The first uppercut he executed had a short peak at the jump before landing and performing a second, identical uppercut for a total of six blocked hits. Kenny was starting to feel the pressure already, the sweat of the effort breaking all over his forehead. Ken pressed on however, performing a third uppercut that Kenny hadn't expected, connecting firmly with the younger warrior's ribcage, tossing him helplessly into the air.   
  
Just as Kenny was being thrust overhead, Ken landed from his final uppercut and crouched to the ground, the experienced martial artist powering up his chi, positioning himself directly under the boy, falling head first towards the ground.   
  
A pillar of light formed upwards as Ken leapt into the air, hoping to catch Kenny in a flurry of fiery punches in a single performed "Shinryuuken" - the true Dragon Punch. However just as he was about to connect the first hits to Kenny's head, the boy flipped so that he was in the upright position, kicking Ken square in the face as the two bodies met in a powerful vertical collision.   
  
Kenny had gotten more air time, successfully bouncing of Ken, pushing himself further into the air. He spread his arms, and a burst of energy exploded from his body, encasing him in a protective shell of fire. The fire gradually shaped itself to that of a giant bird that lunged down towards Ken, who had already hit the teak floor hard.   
  
The firebird that encased Kenny's body swooped down on massive wings, its giant claws outstretched, ready to grasp its prey in a death vice. The bird collided with Ken, injuring the both of them. Ken was nearly thrown over the edge of the platform, while the firebird's energy merely disappeared, throwing Kenny like a rag doll onto the teak flooring. The two of them recovered without much fuss and resumed the fight.   
  
**

***

**   
  
Sitting on the sidelines, watching the fight intently, a surge of confusion filled Goku. He sat focusing his attention on the boy known as Kenneth Feng. The moves he performed reminded Goku of … he thought about it again for a moment, reaching his conclusion. Kenny was performing the moves that Goku himself had taught his son Gohan when Gohan was just a young child. How was it possible that Kenny knew the martial arts exclusive to Goku's family?   
  
Though there was a part of him that felt skeptical, Goku was sure that Kenny studied the same martial art, or one that was very similar to Goku's own. But how was the boy able to attain such knowledge? Here he was, in a tournament that transgressed dimensions, and in front of him stood this child from a different world that shared the same fighting style. How strange indeed …   
  
"Huh, that's weird," He muttered. And then it hit him, the realization dawning on him so quickly that it had sent a violent chill up his spine. It wasn't only the moves that Kenny performed that made Goku realize how he could actually come to be - the firebird move was unmistakable. There was only one explanation for this. Obviously, for one who knew the martial arts present only in Goku's family, one must've had at least existed in the Dragon Ball universe. Since this person was now present in a trans-dimensional tournament, the only person who co-existed with Goku and the others in the Dragon Ball universe that had moved on to another life was none other than …   
  
"Goken," Goku whispered gravely under his breath. He looked again at Kenny, eyeing his every move, even the physical appearance of the boy. "He fights like Goken, he looks just like him too, down to the last detail". Even the straight hair that barely touched the boy's brows matched what Goku remembered of his second son down to a T.   
  
No, it was too good to believe. Goku knew that Goken was dead, and he would forever be dead. The chances of Kenny being Goken were too low, the odds impossibly high. What were the chances that they would reunite in a tournament? Goku had no idea what kind of life his son was leading right now. Even if Kenny was the reincarnated version of Goken, they were now two different people meant to lead two different lives. He nodded his head, deciding against approaching Kenny after the fight was over. He knew that the fates wouldn't allow Goken's past to return to haunt him, and Goku decided that it would be for the best in the long run.   
  
**

***

**   
  
Kenny hit the deck hard from exhaustion. He refused to believe that he had been defeated by Ken. Then again, it probably wasn't as bad as it would've been if it had been the other way around. Ken was older, bulkier and more experienced. Stubborn as he was, Kenny forced himself off the ground - at least, he tried to. He could see the hand of the ref flashing over him as he counted. The man was slowly counting down to zero and once it had reached that dreaded number of nothingness, he knew that the match would be over. Kenny tried raising his upper body off the ground, but his muscles burned with pain, refusing to obey him.   
  
Just as the countdown reached one, Kenny felt something grasp his arm, pulling the boy quickly to his feet.   
  
"Get up, Kenny," Ken ordered, "you're not finished this fight yet, are you?"  
  
"No," he replied weakly. "I'm not done …" But Kenny's knees buckled from underneath him, his legs too tired to support his weight anymore. Bruises adorned his body and he was bleeding from a cut lower lip. As minor as his injuries were, they added up, taking a tremendous toll on his inexperienced body, and he just hit the floor like a sack. "I'm sorry, Uncle Ken. I guess I'm not quite the fight you were looking for."   
  
_"The winner of the match is…Ken Masters!" _The crowd cheered, more impressed with the young man's performance than by anything else. Ken hefted the bruised lad up, placing one of his arms on his thick shoulders before facing the crowd with a grin. "Give Kenny a hand everyone! He was terrific!"   
  
The crowd agreed, and Kenny managed a wan smile as he gazed at the mass. Even some of the fighters where applauding, including the man with the strange hair and orange outfit who seemed strangely…familiar.   
  
Kenny shook his head. "I'd never met him before. Must have just taken a few too many hits," he mumbled under his breath as Ken helped him to the side of the area, where others helped him through the ropes and back into the holding area, and where he was promptly taken to a chair. His body pooled into it in relief.   
  
"Did I really do that good Uncle Ken?" He asked, one of his eyelids slightly swelling.   
  
"You did great kiddo. I'll be feeling a few of those hits for sure." Kenny smiled wider as Sakura rushed over, interrupting their private moment with her banter.   
  
"That was soo cool! I've never seen you fight like that before! And the way you did that whole bird thing, that was awesome! I didn't know you could do that!"   
  
_"Neither did I."_ Ken thought to himself, puzzled as he thought over the whole fight. He dismissed it though as the announcer prepared to call out the next match.   
  
*******************************   
  
_ "Our next match is Mr. Barsoum vs. Tank." _   
  
Tank took in a deep breath before releasing it slowly, trying to calm the butterflies that had suddenly taken flight in his gut. As he took the first step towards the raised deck though, an explosion erupted. Several club goers were sent flying, dead or badly wounded before they knew what hit them. Shrapnel filled the air, slicing into anything and everything in their path. As it turned out, Gotenks was the closest to the blast than any of the other fighters, and he cried out in pain as several pieces of debris nicked him, blood trickling from the small wounds.   
  
More cries of pain could be heard as smoke flowed from a small crater at what used to be one of the bars in the club. Tank and Barsoum both rushed over to the area, placing fingers on necks, or checking for wounds and talking to people gently yet quickly.   
  
"You'll be ok miss. Just stay awake, the medics will be here and take care of you." Tank said to a young woman as she started to turn white with shock. She had no visible injuries, but that didn't mean that she didn't have anything internally wrong.   
  
"You're alright man. You just got scratched a bit. Lay here for a moment while I put this on you." Barsoum took a piece of his victim's shirt and wrapped it around a nasty gash in the man's arm.   
  
They worked their way forward towards the source of the explosion, finding fewer and fewer living among the debris, while Goku (after helping Gotenks), Ranma, Akane and other fighters, club goers and a few of the police that weren't busy locking the place down followed, helping the people out of the smoking club.   
  
*****************************   
  
_Up in the balcony…_**   
  
"Send our medics in there immediately." Bison ordered as he gazed down at the devastation below him though a now cracked window. The aide rushed off, not asking why the usually uncaring Shadowlaw leader wanted their paramedics to help innocent civilians.   
  
Bison's reason's though, where far from altruistic. _ "If we can get so much as a small sample of that boy's DNA, the world will be mine."_ Bison grinned at the thought. He had sensed the explosive heading towards his and Geese's booth before it went off, and had deflected it with his mind almost without a thought.   
  
Beside him Geese held a hand to his head, the concussion having given him quite the headache. He turned towards Bison, asking, "This wouldn't happen to have been your doing would it?" 

"No, it was not. Nor do I really care who did do it." Bison half lied.   
  
"Then why are you sending your medics down there?" Geese waved to his aide, who came forward instantly.   
  
"That is none of your concern Geese. What I do with Shadowlaw assets is mine, and mine alone." Bison turned his powerful body till it faced the Akido master, almost in challenge.   
  
Geese shrugged, although inside he seethed. He knew that Bison was up to something, and he was determined to get in on the action. He barely turned to his aide, saying, "Lock this place down. Get the police outside, and let no one but the medics in here. Find out who set off the bomb."   
  
"Yes sir." The man replied, before running off to get the task done.   
  
**************************   
  
In no time the police had been hustled outside with the walking wounded, while the fighters continued help out, having more experience with wounds than the average person did. Medics in white coats with a strange skull over wings on their lapels got to work giving more advanced assistance.   
  
Sakura coughed slightly from the smoke, before turning her gaze back to Kenny, who had hit the deck almost super fast. "Are you ok?" She asked.   
  
"Yea, I'm ok. I can't seem to get myself back up though." He chuckled weakly. Somehow he had gained incredible speed for a brief moment, but it had drained him.   
  
Ken Masters stood back up, brushing himself off as he quickly turned to Sakura. "Sakura, help Kenny get outside will you?"   
  
She smiled brightly. "Sure thing!" Both she and Ken helped Kenny up and onto her shoulder.   
  
"Where are you going to be?" Kenny asked.   
  
"I'll be in here awhile, shouldn't take long though. Go on, head on out of here." Ken said with a slight smile, giving the impression that everything would be ok.   
  
"Ok." Kenny said simply, and started to limp towards the exit, Sakura giving him support.   
  
**_Not far away…_**   
  
**"Ow!"** Gotenks yelled as a large splinter was removed from his butt.   
  
"Be still son. We're almost done here." A kindly older medic said, placing a bandage on the spot quickly. "For being as close as you were, you actually didn't get much damage. You are one lucky kid."   
  
"Why don't I feel lucky right now?" Gotenks mumbled, while the man dabbed at a gash on his back with a swab before placing a large wrap on the spot. Nobody noticed the man slip the now red swab into a small container before continuing his ministrations.   
  
************   
  
_In the dark corner..._**   
  
Akuma's eyes narrowed as he looked throughout the club's high ceiling. He had noticed a slight movement from above only moments before the explosion, but since then he hadn't been able to see anything. He concentrated, searching for any strong chi concentrations above, but other than the two in the enclosed balcony he felt nothing out of the ordinary. _"A cowardly attack…or was it a ruse?"_ Akuma thought to himself as he kept his eyes above, finally noticing something move in the smoky darkness. It was only a flash of something yellow and red, but it was all he needed to track it. The form slowly worked its way around till it got into a better position to observe what was going on below.   
  
Akuma smirked slightly before disappearing into the dark around him.   
  
**************   
  
_Far above…._**   
  
Rolento gazed down dispassionately at the crowd below. He was highly annoyed. His grenade attack was supposed to hit Bison's booth, but for whatever reason it bounced away far from its target, to explode at the bar.   
  
"It seems I underestimated Bison. He's a much stronger challenge than I expected." The commando smiled slightly at that. He loved a good challenge. "I shall need more intelligence before mounting another attack. There shall not be another miss like this."   
  
"No, there won't be." A deep voice rumbled to the right.   
  
Rolento quickly spun in the direction of the voice, a knife and his baton at the ready as he tensed up for a surprise attack.   
  
Akuma gazed at him; his crimson eyes seemed to laugh while he crossed his powerful arms.   
  
"So, the Master of Fists is after Bison as well?" Rolento tossed out, sweating slightly. If the rumors were true, he would be dead before he knew it. Still, he couldn't help but try to get some information while he thought up of escape routes. "Or does he work for Shadowlaw now?"   
  
"I have no interest in that weak man." Akuma said simply, not moving.   
  
"I have no quarrel with you than sir. I'm only after Bison."   
  
"By making a cowardly attack?" Akuma snorted. "You are weaker than him. You refuse to let your fists do the deed, instead relying on explosives and other weapons, and even then you don't engage your true target."   
  
"Those people weren't my target. I did engage Bison, but it didn't connect." Rolento shot back defensively as he stood straight, sheathing his knife but leaving that arm low. "I know my limitations, and I know what I'm best at."   
  
"That is why you're weak." A reddish aura started to simmer around Akuma, flowing much like trickling water. "And for nearly scaring my prey away, your punishment is death."   
  
Rolento tensed himself again, as he replied, "Not today then Master of Fists." The commando shot out his free arm, and a smoke bomb exploded at his feet. Quickly he leapt further away, heading towards the open vent he'd used to get in.   
  
**"Messatsu…"** Akuma bent down low in a wide side horse stance, clenching his fists as the aura rippled around him, totally undistracted by the smoke bomb. Sparks seemed to shoot from his hands for a brief moment as he powered up one of his stronger attacks. With a grunt and a sudden twisting of his feet, he shot his hands upwards and to the left into a wide cup, sending a large purple beam of energy at Rolento's fleeing form.   
  
Before Rolento knew what had happened, the blast enveloped him just as he was about to enter the large vent, and the last he saw was the metal vent being wrought and shredded like paper before he connected with a now exposed I beam, sending him into darkness.   
  
************   
  
_Below…_**   
  
"What the…" Ranma said as he and several fighters turned their eyes to the ceiling as the area around them took on a purplish cast. All he saw was a dark man with flame-red hair in even darker clothing firing an energy blast more powerful than any he'd ever seen or felt before. Not even Goku's Kamehameha attack of earlier had been that powerful.   
  
"Who's that?" Akane asked in wonder as the blast ended, sending the high ceiling back into darkness.   
  
Not far away Tank and Barsoum both paled. "No…it can't be…" Tank muttered, his blood going cold.   
  
"Man, this shit really sucks!" Barsoum exclaimed, not even bothering with bravado.   
  
"What? Who was that?" Akane had overheard, and turned her gaze towards them.   
  
"That looked like Akuma." Tank said softly.   
  
Akane was confused. "Akuma? Who is that? What's so special about him?" She asked for the third time as two others, Terry Bogard and Ken Masters, approached.. In the short time she'd known the soldier, he hadn't shown any fear. However, he and his friend were definitely afraid, almost visibly shaking.   
  
Ranma worked his way over to them, as did Goku and a now patched up Gotenks, both of them with their eyes locked onto the spot where Akuma was last seen. But before Tank could respond Ken, his face and arms smudged with soot, spoke up.   
  
"Akuma is a master in the Shotokan Karate style. What he learned though is the pure form of the same style as what I and Ryu fight with, and because it is the true form, he has been corrupted by the Dark Hadou." Ken remained wary, trying as hard as he could to sense Akuma's position, his eyes first darting one way than the other as he felt glimpses of the man's chi.   
  
"The Dark Hadou gives him great power, but now his only purpose in life is to fight and kill just for the sake of the violence of it."   
  
Ranma and Akane gulped, their eyes wide. "Great…so why's he here? Did he blow up the bar too?"   
  
Tank, Barsoum, Ken and Goku shook their heads at the same time.   
  
"I didn't sense his power until he used his energy attack. It wasn't him." Goku replied eyes shifting rapidly. Ken nodded in agreement.   
  
"Explosions like that isn't his style." Barsoum said sagely. Tank nodded. "He's a bit more precise than that. That was more like a bomb, or grenade or something along those lines."   
  
"As for why he's here, your guess is as good as mine." Ken shrugged.   
  
Tank felt something…a warning?...from the back of his mind. He spun around and jumped back, taking up a ready stance. The others except for Akane had also felt the danger and had shifted about, taking up ready positions. Akane saw what the others did and also took up a position, feeling her heart race and her energy start to creep up.   
  
"I am not interested in fighting you now." A deep voice from nowhere yet seeming to be from everywhere resonated about them as they started to shift about, trying to find him.   
  
"Awww, he's not so tough." Gotenks snorted, relaxing from his stance.   
  
A loud thump could be heard, followed by several more as Akuma moved, untraceable even to the Saiyans, as he continued to speak. "You are a foolish child. A true warrior enters the arena with all his powers at the ready. You are powerful, but you let that power do your fighting, and not your fists. You lack skill. Your overconfidence is your weakness."   
  
"Yea whatever." Gotenks shot back, getting annoyed. He was about to taunt the man when Goku put his arm out.   
  
"Enough Gotenks. Can't you sense him?" Goku said, his eyes closed.   
  
Gotenks thought a moment, and then frowned. "Well, no."   
  
"Exactly. He's good. His energy is completely masked when he moves. He's strong, and skilled."   
  
A figure appeared out of the smoke in front of them, a reddish aura surrounding him. Several of the fighters jumped, having not sensed his appearance until they could see him.   
  
"This is not the time to fight. We shall meet again, travelers from another dimension." This set everyone but Ken and Terry aback.   
  
"How did you know…" Goku started when Akuma interrupted.   
  
"I have traveled far in my search for worthy opponents. I have yet to find any." Akuma crossed his arms, scowling slightly.   
  
"Are there others like you?" Goku asked in wonderment.   
  
"Where I walk, I walk alone. Where I fight, I fight alone. There are none like me." Akuma said simply as he turned around and began to walk away, a red emblem on his back wreathing and moving as if aflame.   
  
"When shall we fight then?" Goku called.   
  
"When the time comes, and it shall come soon." Akuma replied, disappearing into the smoke.   
  
A few moments passed, until Goku stood back up. "He's gone."   
  
Tank and Barsoum both visibly relaxed. "That was close." They muttered simultaneously.   
  
Ken chuckled slightly. "Yea, that was a bit close for me too. I've never had to fight him before, but Ryu has."   
  
"Ryu?" Terry asked, puzzled for a moment. "Oh yea, the guy who beat Sagat, the Muy Tai champ. What happened?"   
  
Ken shrugged. "Dunno. He doesn't talk about it, other than to say that Akuma thought he was too weak to be much of a challenge. Ryu did say he lost to him though."   
  
"So why didn't Akuma kill him?" Tank inquired.   
  
Again Ken shrugged. "Maybe Ryu put up a better challenge than he expected. Only Ryu knows the answer to that."   
  
Goku crossed his arms, eyebrows knitted. Beside him Gotenks suddenly glowed for a brief moment, then separated back into Trunks and Goten, both of them carrying half of the injuries and bandages that Gotenks had.   
  
Ranma wiped his brow, thankful he didn't have to fight the demon. Granted, he wasn't afraid to fight anyone, and had complete confidence in himself, but he'd seen too many strange things since Trunks and Goten had arrived, and that was only yesterday. Luckily for him, Akuma seemed more interested in the three Saiyans instead.   
  
"So I take it the competition is over?" Barsoum asked somewhat dejectedly.   
  
"Afraid so. The place is a wreck!" Ken swung his arms about the place to underscore his point.   
  
"So what happens with the prize money?"   
  
"Well I think we'll just have to have a follow-up competition. Probably won't be for a few weeks though." Ken rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "It'll take that long just to set up the location."   
  
Goku smiled. "We'll be there!"   
  
Tank turned to Ranma. "Barsoum and I will be heading out now. Guess I'll see you in a couple days then for more training."   
  
Ranma shook his head. "I won't be here. I'm going on a training trip with Goku." He jerked his thumb at the Saiyan.   
  
"Oh." Tank replied. "Alright. I'll check in every so often then until you get back."   
  
"Sounds good." Ranma nodded. He didn't have a clue when he'd be back, but it was a fair bet it wouldn't be for a good long while. At that moment though…   
  
"Nihao!" A high pitched cry was heard as Shampoo attached herself to Ranma, prompting an evil glare from Akane. "Shampoo hear explosion. Came as quickly as possible."   
  
"Get offa me would ya?" Ranma struggled to get the voluptuous young woman off, but as usual wasn't having much success.   
  
"Yea Shampoo. Get off of him. Can't you see he's fine?" Akane glared, her fists clenched.   
  
"Are you sure? Shampoo see lots of people hurt." She asked, although she did let go of Ranma, much to his relief.   
  
While that was going on, Tank turned to Goku. "Could you come over here for a sec?"   
  
"Sure."   
  
They only moved a few feet away, but it was enough to allow them to talk while Shampoo, Akane and Ranma kept talking, or nearly shouting as the case may be.   
  
"What's up?" Goku asked, still not totally sure what to make of Tank. He was friendly enough though.   
  
"Just wanted to let you know to be careful when you go against Akuma."   
  
"Why? Is he much stronger than that?" Goku asked, almost eager.   
  
"He can be. It's not his strength though you need to watch out for. It's his techniques."   
  
Goku scratched his head, curious. "What kinda techniques does he have?"   
  
"There's just one I think you have to watch out for. It's called the Raging Demon." Tank shuddered slightly.   
  
"What's that?"   
  
"He teleports to you, grabs you, and with at least 15 precise hits kills you. I've heard that your own sins are what does the deed, adding to the damage he causes, but I don't know if that part is true."   
  
"Oh, sounds pretty impressive." Goku held his chin a moment, then blinked. "Hey, how do you know about it?"   
  
Tank smiled slightly. "I know things. I like to keep my ear to the ground."   
  
"What's that do? Do you really learn a lot with your ear on the ground?"   
  
Tank sighed. "That was an analogy. I make sure to find out things is all I mean."   
  
"Oh. Well, I hope to see you again when I bring Ranma and his friends back." Goku stuck out his hand.   
  
"I hope so too." Tank took it, saying, "Take care...Super Saiyan."   
  
Goku let go in shock, and simply watched Tank and Barsoum walk out the door through the line of security guards and disappear into the night.   
  
"Now how'd he know that?" He wondered aloud. He was beginning to think that maybe there might be a benefit to having ones ear to the ground after all.

*********************************   
  
__**

In the DBZ World...   
  
"Ok…the radar says the Dragonball is here…this time." Gohan looked about him, finding that part hard to believe. He floated high over a triple canopy jungle, having found all but the last of the mystical balls over the course of a day. Those hadn't been difficult to find. One had been on a mountain. Another had been in a small cave, while another had been near a village. All he'd been able to get without any issue, and all of those were clinking around in a small satchel at his waist.   
  
This one though, he'd been following it for a good while now. It didn't seem to stay in one place, kind of bouncing from place to place. All of it in the jungle, but never in any one spot.   
  
"Well, I better just get in there and see what it's doing." He lifted his arms as he fell to the ground, crashing through each canopy and getting slapped silly by branches, vines, and whatnot.   
  
"That hurts!" He held his face after it had been hit by a particularly large branch as he continued his descent to the ground. He'd been controlling his fall the entire time, but it didn't seem to make much difference. "I hope I get through soon."   
  
Finally he broke through the bottom canopy, and into near total darkness. He could feel the eyes of thousands of creatures upon him, his ears filled with their sounds. He smelled the rot of the jungle as his skin started to sweat from the oppressive humidity. His feet threatened to slide out from under him, but he managed to keep from falling. Wiping some of the sweat from his face, he gazed at the glowing display of the radar, and it continued to blink the location of the Dragonball, still somewhere below him in the darkness.   
  
"This is crazy!" He muttered. "I can't see a thing down here." He gazed back upwards, the hole he'd punched having closed back up the moment he had passed through.   
  
"I'm sorry to do this, but I need to see what I'm doing. Forgive me." He charged an energy wave in his hand, and shot it directly above him, blowing a good sized hole into each canopy, letting in a large beam of sunlight. He blinked from the sudden influx of light, and took a moment to adjust, his feet again seeming to slide together.   
  
When he opened his eyes, he gazed directly at a large anaconda, which was in the process of wrapping around him and had gotten up to his waist. "Wah!!!" He shrieked, panicking slightly, although most of it was from surprise. The snake, for its part, simply hissed and continued to do its work.   
  
"Get off of me!" He yelled, pushing down on the snake, trying to get his legs freed. But the snake wouldn't have any of that, and wrapped around his arms and his chest quickly, and didn't do anything more. Every time Gohan exhaled slightly, the snake would tighten up, making it more and more difficult for Gohan to get a breath of air. The end result was that he would become unconscious and then die from lack of air.   
  
Gohan knew this, and was determined that it wouldn't happen. "I don't have time for this! Aaaaaah…." He yelled, increasing his strength and slowly pushing the coil of the snake open bit by bit. The snake tightened up more though, and seemed to have the upper hand. With a flash of brilliant light shooting out from between the snakes' coil Gohan transformed into a Super Saiyan and blasted his aura out in all directions.   
  
The snake didn't get to see this, having been blown to smithereens in the process. Gohan panted slightly, the glow about him especially bright in the darkness of the jungle. Catching his breath, he bowed his head slightly. "I'm sorry, but I couldn't become a meal for you." He gazed at the radar, and noticed it had moved slightly in relation to him. He looked about, and in the blasted pieces of the snake he noticed a familiar orange object.   
  
"Ah, there you are." He smiled as he picked it up. It glowed slightly as if in response, and he put it in the satchel with the rest of them. He looked upwards into the hole he had created earlier and shot out into the bright and much fresher sky, heading for the Lookout.

**__**

To be continued...   
  
Finally Goku and Company are done with the competition, and Gohan has the Dragonballs. Things are moving up...but what of Akuma? And Bison? What new things will Ranma and friends learn? Are Videl and Gohan Gunna Get Jiggy Wit It? These and more questions will be attempted to be answered at some undetermined point in time, hopefully soon. Until then...   
  
¤§¤

  



	17. Intermission

**_Intermission…._**

Ranma scratched his head in confusion, then turned to Goku and asked, "Goku, can I ask you a question?"

Goku smiled and replied, "Sure!"

"Is it true that the Romans had a holy chicken?"

Goku held his chin a moment, and then nodded. "Why yes Ranma. The Romans believed in many different religions, but in battle they didn't always get to pay homage to all the gods the right way, so they found alternate methods to do the job. The Holy Roman Chicken was one of them."

"Oh…but Machiavelli didn't believe in the Chicken?" Akane asked now, puzzled.

A new voice interrupted, deep and gravely. "No. Machiavelli believed in only one thing, to rule by the strongest means possible." Vegeta walked up to the group, his arms crossed. 

"Now that's not true Vegeta!" Goku exclaimed. "He only suggested killing off the ruler and his or her entire family and then moving in. Has nothing to do with being strong."

"You're a fool Kakkarot. It's amazing that Stalin didn't just kill you, your stupidity and ignorance about the dialectic flow of history would just curl his toes." Vegeta growled.

"Ho Chi Minh knew about the dialectic too, but he didn't do everything like Stalin." Ranma pointed out. 

"You stay out of this boy! This is between me and Kakkarot!" Vegeta shot out a finger to punctuate his point. 

"I asked the first question though!" Ranma shot back, holding up his fist.

"Doesn't matter now boy. Especially since your campaign manager left you! So you lost your place in the race." Vegeta sneered.

"I never lose! I will win this election, for the Holy Roman Chicken has said so, and my first order of business will be to eliminate all opposition, starting with you!" Ranma shouted back. 

"There's no need for that Ranma." Ryu said, placing a calming hand on the lads shoulder. "The Revolution will take care of him. The people are speaking out against him, and they will continue to demand their bread and will storm his palace at Versailles."

"What?!?! The people storm my palace! Never!" Vegeta powered up to Super Saiyan, enraged at the thought.

"What the hell is up with this crap?" Barsoum said from a conveniently located and oh so very comfortable seat. "Since when did anime characters talk about Romans, Vietnam, campaign for election and Stalin???" 

"That's none of you business!" Vegeta yelled at the spirit. 

"Actually Vegeta, it is all our business." Xavier said as his hover chair floated in. "This is not normal, nor is having all of us here together."

"Sensei Xavier is right." Sailor Mercury said as she and the scouts followed the Professor. "There's some kind of rift in place, and we've all been placed in a limbo of some sorts."

Vegeta looked blankly at Mercury, and then with a blur appeared right next to her, and in an instant they were both making mad love….

*** * * * * * * ***

**"AAAAHHH!!!!!"** The author shot up in his bed, sweat beading on his forehead. He panted several times, his heart racing. His black cocker spaniel lifted his head from the floor, curious to see what his owner was doing. 

"Damn…that was crazy!" He said, wiping a hand through his forehead. The dog got up slowly and padded over to him, sniffing a couple times as he got close. The author smiled and reached down to pet the dog, and scratch behind the ears. 

"I tell ya pup, that was the weirdest dream I've had in awhile. I think my stories and my university work is starting to mix." He ran a hand through his short red hair, calming. "I need a break…thank god Thanksgiving is here though. Man it's been so long since I wrote a chapter…maybe I can write up a chapter or two so I can avoid this again." The author shuddered at the thought.

He patted the dog again, and said seriously, "Remind me not to read up on Machiavelli before bed next time." He lay back down, considerably calmer.

The dog, for his part, hopped up with some effort onto the bed and curled up besides his owners legs, sighing deeply from the effort. 

.......

**_Sorry folks. I figured I should give you something while I'm swamped with school and all the other necessary evils of life (work). I'll try to get something going on at least one story, but it all depends on how my latest paper goes (which happens to be on Campaigns and Elections). In case you're wondering, there were references to the Renaissance, the French Revolution, the rise of Communism in Russia, the Romans, Vietnam, and campaigns and elections._**

Hope you got a good chuckle at least. ^_^

RBL_M1A2Tanker  
A.k.a. "Tank" or simply, "The Author."

P.S. The holy Roman chicken thing is true.


	18. Chapter 15: Time to head home

**_DBZR 1/2_**

**_Chapter 15: Time to head home._**

Piccolo sat in the middle of the Lookout, meditating. Every so often he would sense a disturbance in the Earth's spirit…but he could never lock in on it. It almost seemed as if something was moving here and there, touching this or that, much as a kid in a toy store would. He grunted slightly, annoyed. As the protector of the planet after Goku and Gohan, he should have a better feel for what was going on, but it seemed as if something was throwing up a large shield, hiding what they were doing for those brief moments, until it went away, and by then it was too late and he couldn't tell what had happened.

"This is maddening. Whoever this god is, he's very clever at hiding his touch. It's not L-Sama…but Kami's memories don't tell me who it could be. Darn it!" He muttered. Behind him Dende lowered his head, as frustrated as Piccolo and the others…although they were busy doing their own thing at the moment.

Vegeta leaned against a pillar, looking as surly as ever, but in reality he was thinking things over. Especially how he was going to destroy whatever it was that was doing what it was doing. "Maybe I'll just Final Flash this being first, and then pound him into a pulp before I send him to oblivion with my Big Bang attack…or maybe…" He thought to himself, constantly thinking up a new tactic or strategy instead of going with the previous one. It was all a mental exercise anyways, and he knew it.

Krillin, 18, Tien and Bulma were in their own little corners, thinking about anything and nothing. Tien kept flicking the ugly looking hair out of his eyes, and both 18 and Krillin tried to keep their shirts from being decimated. Bulma didn't have that issue though, but her lack of age was a bother to her. 

Videl sat far away from the rest, getting a feel for her new body. Or, to be precise, reworked body, as the only things that changed was her eyes, her increased muscle strength and tone, and the tail. 

The tail was taking the most time for her to get used to. "Darn you…quite moving!" She hissed, as the tail moved away from her grasping hands. It almost seemed to have a mind of its' own really. She sighed, exasperated. "Oh forget it." She muttered. The tail for its part wrapped around her waist almost naturally. She looked at it, and then pursed her lips. "Now you do what I wanted you to do…" She said dryly. 

Everyone suddenly perked up and looked to the edge of the bowl, just as Gohan flew up and over the lip, landing nearby Piccolo. "I got them all." He said triumphantly as he handed them to Dende.

"Good. We'll make the wishes now then." Vegeta stalked forward. 

"Hold on a moment Vegeta…we don't even know what we're going to wish for." Bulma pointed out.

"That's simple woman. We wish for everything to be returned to normal, and then to wish me to the location of this 'higher god' so I can destroy him." Vegeta smirked evilly…just before he got kicked in the shin by Bulma.

"Woman! Why did you do that for?!" He screamed. 

"To get you out of this one track mind you have. So you go there and blow this guy up…how you going to get back?" She placed her hands on her hips in challenge.

He smirked again. "That wouldn't have mattered. I would have felt a lot better." He crossed his arms. "Not that the second wish was a serious one. Tempting though…" He grinned again.

Bulma shook her head. "Saiyans…" She muttered.

Dende laid out the Dragon Balls in a rough circle as they glowed in a rhythm. He held his hands out to the collection, and chanted, **"By Your Name I Summon You Forth, Shenron!!!"** They began to glow steadily, and the sky grew darker than pitch, and a blast of golden light shot forth into the sky, quickly taking on the shape of a dragon until finally, as it twirled and flowed about in the air, the glow vanished, and the giant green dragon known as Shenron floated above them all, growling slightly. 

**_"Who disturbs my slumber?"_** The mighty dragon rumbled, its face antenna flowing like ripples on water.

****

* * * * * * 

**_In Ranma's dimension…_**

"So how much longer should we wait for him?" Goku asked, scratching his head. They were waiting on the outcropping Ranma near the islands of the Jepoc Circle, waiting for…

"Knowing Ryoga, he won't show up for another four days." Ranma commented dryly, his pack on his back. 

After the police had their chance to question the fighters, they were released to go home, where Nabiki quickly vanished for a good while, mentioning something about developing something. Ryoga had parked himself in, ironically enough, a park, resting up for the next day's trip in his tent. 

Akane and Ranma had separated and gone to do their own things, which meant that Akane went to the dojo to train herself some more before bed, and Ranma just passed out. Goku, after he got a promise to spar or flat out fight with Terry Bogard and Ken Masters in the next fight before they had left, had gone into the living room and meditated for a good while before he finally went to sleep.

Goten and Trunks had gone straight to sleep in Kasumi's room, which didn't bother Kasumi at all, as they slept on the floor. 

By the next morning, it was a hectic time, what with running around, getting meals eaten, getting Soun over his crying fit as his girl was off to train for the first time ever, finally changing Genma back to normal only to separate Ranma and him from fighting again, and then removing Shampoo from Ranma before Akane killed him…

It was noon when they were finally assembled, with packs ready. 

Cologne handed out a sheaf of small wards from her pack, placing one on each person's body. "This will provide safety from Toltir until the task is completed. Until I have created the barrier in your world, you cannot remove these wards." 

Goku nodded. "Ok, got it." 

"Shampoo thinks we go without Lost Boy." Shampoo said, crossing her arms under her bosom, ready to get going. 

"I'll get him." Goku placed two fingers on his forehead, and stood there for a few seconds.

The Nerima residents looked at him strangely. Trunks and Goten just watched, knowing what was coming. 

With a slight blur Goku vanished, surprising everyone but Trunks and Goten. Within a moment he reappeared, aforementioned Lost Boy next to him, highly confused. 

"How…how'd you do that?" Ranma asked, amazed. 

"Instant Transmission. It's the only way to travel." Goku joked, smiling a Son grin ™. 

Cologne sighed, impressed more and more by the Saiyans abilities. "So is that how we'll be traveling to your dimension?"

Goku nodded. "Yup. Matter of fact that will be the way we'll get over there." He jerked a thumb to the Circle. "All you have to do is make a chain and one of you put a hand on me."

Ryoga just blinked a couple of times. "How…how'd I get here?"

The others ignored him as Cologne slapped a ward on his chest. "Don't remove this." She ordered simply. He was too stunned to argue about it. 

Ranma placed a hand on Goku, and the other travelers followed. Goku turned to Goten and Trunks and gave quick instruction, "Now you guys be good and don't get into trouble."

They both smiled brightly in that innocent boys look, saying in unison, "Right! We'll be good!"

"Ok then. Take care!" He waved, and then put his fingers to his forehead, focusing on the unique energy signature in the center of the Circle. They vanished, leaving Nabiki, Soun, and Genma with the two Saiyan boys. Soun was crying a river…literally.

"My little girl is growing up Saotome!! Waaaah!" 

"They all do Tendo." Genma said sagely. The other three just rolled their eyes as they looked at the Jepoc Circle.

*** * * * **

_In the Circle…_

The group materialized on a small patch of land in the center of the Circle. Goku turned, and smiled. "Yup, all here so far." 

"So what comes next?" Ranma asked, letting go for the moment, checking for himself to see everyone had arrived. Akane, Cologne, Shampoo, Ryoga, and Ranma where the ones going on this trip, although it was hard to determine if there would be another trip or not.

"Now I need to sense a strong power in my dimension so I can get us there. But it took a lot of energy last time for me to sense the boys, so I'm not going to hold back as much." He bent his arms. 

"Hold back? What do you mean by…" Akane started to ask when Goku interrupted.

"Aaaaaah ha!" A flash of gold filled the air as the trademark Super Saiyan warble filled the air, his hair upright and gold and his eyes cyan. "Aaaaaaaaahhhhhh ha!" He cried again, his muscles bulging some, his hair grew slightly longer and a couple of the bangs over his eyes straightened out. Blue bolts flowed around his body as he made the jump to Super Saiyan 2. "There…that should do the trick this time. Well, shall we go?" He smiled and turned to the others…and then looked bewildered when they all seemed to be ready to swim away.

"What's wrong?" He asked innocently. Honestly, they'd seen a Super Saiyan...this shouldn't have been a surprise to them…should it?

All of them just recoiled away from the strange creature before them. _ "How…just how much more power can one put out? This is far beyond anything that I could have dreamed in my worst nightmare!"_ Cologne thought to herself, even though she had known that he'd been holding back before. She just didn't know how much, or how far off her own guesses were.

"Goku…what's this?" Ranma gulped. 

"Oh this? This is Super Saiyan 2." He said simply, like Ranma should have guessed it from the beginning.

"And…you can go higher than that?" Akane said, almost trembling. 

"Yea, up to Super Saiyan 3, although I still need to work with it. I haven't totally gotten used to it, at least not since I was brought back from Otherworld." He replied.

Ranma just looked at his in a stupor, to the point that the others thought he'd been frightened stiff when he slowly started to shake. "I…."

The group looked at him, curious. He shook some more, until finally he shot a fist out in challenge. **"I want that power!"** He cried, looking almost maniacal. The others dropped to the dirt, caught off guard.

Goku just gazed on, incredulous. "Uh…well…we'll work on it." Was all he could say, too surprised to tell him only those with Saiyan blood could do it. 

He regained his composure quickly, saying, "Well, let's get going. Grab hold guys." He placed his two fingers to his forehead again, searching. The Nerima crew got up and quickly took up position again, grabbing hold of Goku in a circle around him.

"Wow…I sense an enormous energy…they must have summoned the Dragon! Alright!" Goku said happily. "Here we go!" With a blur the group vanished, just as a small wave washed over the small spit of land. 

*** * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * **

_At the Lookout…_

"Mighty Shenron!" Dende called, taking care of the wishes for the others. They had decided on Vegetas' first wish, since that one made sense. They'd release Shenron afterwards. "Forgive us for waking you, but we have an urgent wish to make of you!"

**_"Then speak it, and leave me to my rest."_** Shenron replied, annoyed. He was never one for conversation.

"Mighty Shenron, we wish for the effects of the higher god to be undone, returning everyone who was changed by him back to normal." 

Shenron paused. For a long time. 

"You think he can do it?" Krillin asked, crossing his arms in a manly way.

"I hope so." Bulma replied.

Finally Shenron spoke. 

**_"This wish of yours…asks more than I can give. I shall ask the God himself to undo it."_** The eyes glowed bright red for a long time as he communicated with the being responsible for it all.

*** * * * * * **

"Why Shenron…what a pleasant surprise!" Toltir said happily, looking at the spirit form of the great dragon. "It has been such a long time…what brings you here to my humble home?"

**_"You have brought about changes to my world Toltir. I have been summoned to undo these changes, of which you know I cannot. I ask you to undo them, as one mystical being to another."_**

It had to be the most the dragon had ever said. Was it enough though?

Toltir looked on for a moment, and then put a finger to his cheek, thinking. "Well…maybe. What's in it for me though? What can you give me in exchange?" He knew the answer to that as well as Shenron did.

Nothing.

The dragon growled in a sigh. **_"So be it. Farewell."_**

"Oh don't be like that. Can't have you leaving all upset now can I?" Toltir stood up from his chair and approached the spirit form. "Maybe I could undo part of it? Would that appease your wish makers?"

_**"It would not. Their wish was specific." **_

Toltir sighed dramatically. "Guess that puts you in a bad spot. You'll just have to tell them that you can't."

_**"I shall, Toltir. Farewell."**_ The dragon's spirit vanished. 

The god shrugged. "He never could deal. Oh well." He went back to whatever he was doing before.

*** * * * * * * * * * ***

The eyes stopped glowing, and the gathered looked up in hope. It was soon dashed as he spoke.

**_"I have asked the god, and he denied the request. Your wish cannot be granted."_**

They all released their breath, disappointed. 

**_"Make your wishes."_** The dragon said, not nearly as harsh as last time.

They thought for a bit when suddenly they all looked over to the side a split second before Goku and the Nerima guests appeared. 

"Heya! Looks like I was right, you did summon Shenron!" Goku said happily, not drained like was last time. 

"Goku? You're back!" Bulma yelled in surprise.

"Dad! You made it!" Gohan said happily.

"Kakarott? Who are they?" Vegeta said gruffly as he pointed at the others. 

"Oh, these are some new friends that I brought here for training. Except for her.." He pointed at Cologne. "..she's here to help block Toltir from messing anything up in this dimension."

It was this moment that he noticed how much different some of his friends were. 

"B-Bulma? You're…smaller? And Krillin…how'd you get taller than me? Tien?!?! You have hair?!?!" Goku's eyes just got wider and more shocked as he took everything in. 

"Toltir? This is the higher god responsible for everything?" 

**_"He is…"_** Shenron confirmed, surprising everyone, not least of all the Nerima crew, who'd never seen such a thing. 

"Wha…Shampoo never see such a thing…" Shampoo said, awed. 

"Nor I child, nor I." Cologne agreed, equally as awed as her granddaughter. 

Goku looked up at the dragon, powering down as he did so. "Hey, you guys make a wish yet?"

"We did Goku, but he couldn't grant this one." Dende replied sadly. 

"Great! This will work out great!" Goku said happily, although no one was sure how it was such a great thing.

"Shenron! Can you sense the barrier that was placed in Cologne's universe against Toltir?" He asked. 

The dragon paused for a moment before answering.

**_"I can." _**

"Can you set up something like that in the area where Toltir enters this dimension?"

**_"I can not make such a barrier."_**

"Oh no, just make a bunch of islands in a circle like that one. That's my wish." 

_**"So be it."**_ The eyes glowed bright red for a moment before fading away. 

**_"It is done. You have one last wish."_**

Goku turned to everyone. "Anyone have a wish?" 

Cologne looked up at him curiously, asking, "This creature will grant wishes? Any kind?" 

Goku nodded. "Yup, but maybe you guys should wait." The other Z fighters shrugged or shook their heads when he looked around about the last wish.

"Sorry Shenron, we'll save the last wish for later. Sorry to trouble ya, and thanks a lot!" He waved to the dragon happily.

**_"Farewell."_** The dragon replied, its voice deepening. The original bright glow returned and the dragon vanished, leaving only a small glowing circle in the air until, with almost a loud bang, the seven Dragon Balls separated and flew across the globe to new locations, and the sky returned to its normal blue color.

"So this is what Toltir can do huh?" Goku asked, scratching his head as he looked at each changed person. His gazed stopped on Videl for a moment. "Wow…you're a lot stronger now. Have you been training extra hard or something?"

She sighed, and her tail unwrapped from her waist. "Not exactly…"

"Wah! You're a Saiyan now?" He looked on in surprise, not expecting something like this.

"Yeah Dad. It was a rather sudden affair, with some strange side effects." 

Goku looked at his son, curious. "Side effects? She's got a larger stomach now, is that what you mean?" 

"Well, there's that…" Gohan and Videl both blushed furiously. 

"Oh…well what else was there?" He asked innocently.

The couple just looked at the ground, blushing even worse than before. 

"She's got an increased sex drive, but that's been taken care of for now." Vegeta answered, his arms crossed again. 

Goku looked at Gohan in wonderment. "Wow…I didn't realize you guys were that far along in your relationship." 

**"It's not like that at all! Vegeta showed me a submissive move to get Videl so stop so we could at least act normal in public!!" **Gohan was yelling, surprised and in shock that his father was thinking along those lines. 

"Oh…well it must not be a horrible side effect then if you have a counter, right?" Goku scratched the back of his head, smiling. 

"Y-yea…you're right." Gohan said quickly, just wanting to move the subject along. 

Bulma walked up to Goku, looking up at him and asking, "So tell us…did you find the boys?" 

Goku looked down at Bulma, still a little unused to a much shorter…and younger version of her and nodded. "Yup. I found them. They're just fine." 

"Well that's good…where are they?" Her fists were on her hips.

"Oh I left them in that dimension so I'd have a way to take these guys home when we're done. They're with good people." He answered. 

**"What!?!?! ** You left my boy in a strange dimension with strange people and no way to get home all?!?!?" Bulma raged, her fists in front of her as she ranted. "Goku…I'll kill you!!!!!"

"That's the spirit woman." Vegeta said with a large grin on his face, rather enjoying himself.

"You stay out of this!" She shot back before she turned her attention back to Goku, who had his hands up defensively.

"Come on! You know I can get them just fine! I had to have something strong in order to take these guys home. Their dimension just didn't have anything strong enough." He said in an attempt to calm her down. 

Bulma crossed her arms, "Whatever. If anything happens to him though, I'll be after your head." She stalked off…with Vegeta still smiling, watching.

Goku sighed, relieved, as Videl walked up to the new arrivals who'd been quiet so far.

"So who are you guys?" 

"I'm Ranma Saotome, sorry about all this." Ranma said, eyes downcast as he apologized. It was because of them that Goku had gotten yelled at, and that did bother him.

"Oh don't worry about Bulma. She understands. Really!" Goku told them. 

"If you say so…" Ranma looked at him, an eyebrow raised in disbelief. 

"I'm Akane Tendo." Akane said next, dropping her pack on the tile ground.

"Shampoo." The busty Amazon spoke up, also putting her pack down with a rather heavy thud.

"Ryoga Hibiki." The Lost Boy also dropped his pack and promptly sat down in front of it.

"And I'm Cologne, Elder Amazon." The tiny old woman perched herself on the top of her cane with ease, looking at each Z fighter present. "Please excuse me, but this has to be done for your safety." She hopped about, slapping a spirit ward on each person, even on Vegeta, before they knew it. 

"What's this?" 18 said, while blushing slightly as to the location of her spirit ward. 

"These are spirit wards; they'll keep Toltir from making any more changes to you until I have prepared the barrier. Keep them on until I am done and you shall be safe from further harm." She placed the last one on Bulma and hopped back, satisfied. 

"Well, maybe I should take you over to that island circle now so you can get started?" Goku asked Cologne, who nodded in response.

"The sooner the better." 

"Ok. Let's take care of something first." He turned to Dende. "Hey Dende, you don't mind if they can stay here for awhile? I promised some training with them, and we don't have enough space at my house for them to stay." 

"Sure Goku. No problem. They can stay here as long as they want." Dende said with a smile. "Mr. Popo will see to the arrangements." 

"Great! Well, let's get going." He said the last to Cologne, who hopped over and landed on his back easily. 

"Ready when you are." 

"Here goes…" With a small blast of energy they launched into the air, heading for the location of the strange yet now familiar energy passage.

For a few minutes no one moved, as the four teens looked at the others in wonderment. 

Ranma analyzed each one, until his gaze fell upon Vegeta. "What are you looking at?" He shot out gruffly. 

Things were off to a great start already. 

**_To be continued…_**

Next time, Cologne goes to work setting up the barrier, and the others begin to train. Meanwhile, Trunks and Goten go exploring and of course you can guess what happens. That's right, something unexpected happens. Will the boys get in trouble? And what happened to Akuma and Bison? Are Gohan and Videl ever going to get jiggy with it at all now? All this and maybe more will be written up someday late at night in the middle of a college semester...or maybe before that. Or after…bah, who knows? 

Just kick the author and he'll get around to it. Guy can't get motivated like he used to…guess he's a wuss or…ACK!! Help! The…author…is…chok...ing…me….**the sound of a body thumping to the ground is heard, as well as a pair of hands clapping together, as if knocking dust off.**

We're experiencing technical difficulties at this time. Please stand by as we attempt to locate a tap-dancing weather man to take the previous narrators place. 

Until next time…

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	19. Chapter 16: The barrier is placedbut too...

**_DBZR ½_**

**_Chapter 16: The barrier is placed...but too late?_**

The wind fluttered in her long white hair, cascading over her face as Cologne and Goku flew onwards, passing by many new and exciting sights, at least for her. She let out an uncharacteristic whoop of joy as they passed through a cloud bank.

"Yes! That's the way!" Goku said happily, flying rather slow to keep from causing her any undue discomfort.

"This is incredible! I feel like a young girl again! If only I knew how to do this myself..." She trailed off, still enjoying the moment.

"It's not that hard. You just have to use your energy right." The Saiyan commented.

Cologne looked down at the back of Goku's head. "Is that so? Hmm, I know of many chi techniques but none have hinted towards flight."

She could feel him shrug slightly under her. "Probably because you've never had someone strong enough think to invent it."

"There may be some truth to this." The old woman replied sagely. "There has never been someone nearly as powerful as you, even as you are now."

"Sure there is. There are several that are strong enough on your planet now."

"What?!" Cologne gasped at the back of his head, rather shocked by that.

"Yup. There are plenty on your world strong enough to fly, including Ranma." He replied over his shoulder, looking back.

Cologne was silent for a moment, and then she ventured a question. "What about my Shampoo? Is she strong enough?"

"Hmmm." He looked forward and up to the sky slightly, thinking about it. Finally he said, "Could be. Don't know yet though."

Cologne quieted, lost in her own thoughts as they flew on.

"Don't make me repeat myself kid." Vegeta growled at the pig-tailed fighter.

"I said nothing! Geez, kinda touchy." Ranma grunted in reply, crossing his arms and looking away. Vegeta harrumphed before looking away himself.

When a suitable moment had passed Ranma glanced at the Saiyan Prince and smirked slightly. _"He might be a challenge..._" He thought to himself, noting the proud posture, powerful build and obvious confidence. Much like himself in a way.

For his part Vegeta seemed to ignore him, but inwardly he couldn't help but be slightly curious. Normally he wouldn't bat an eye at such weaklings, especially if brought by Kakarott. But there was something different about him. He seemed...very confident, even among those who were far and away his betters. The boy seemed to have no fear, not that he could tell anyways. For that matter, neither did the boy wearing the bandanna. He'd watch them for a bit, if just to pass the time.

The Saiyan smirked slightly himself. _"I just might teach them the meaning of fear..."_ He thought wickedly, rather enjoying that thought.

Akane looked at the odd group around them and finally sighted in on a raven-haired girl more her age. She trotted over and smiled, saying, "Hi. What's your name?"

"Uh...Videl. Videl Satan." The girl replied, a little taken aback by the direct manner, but finding it rather refreshing, compared to those in her school and in public who were too star struck by her celebrity status. She held out her hand...

And the dirty blonde girl took it in a firm grip. "Pleased to meet you. You know martial arts?" She asked, glancing at the brown 'belt' around her slender waist. She hadn't caught the it when Videl had shown off her tail for Goku, and it had re-wrapped itself afterwards.

Videl smiled confidently. "Sure do. I was trained by my father."

"Me too!" Akane beamed, feeling a connection. "Want to spar?"

Videl grinned; her new Saiyan body had been feeling a need to burn some pent up energy. "Sure, but I won't go easy."

"Heh, at least you'll try, unlike some around here..." Her veiled hint and slight gaze were both directed to Ranma, who blithely continued sitting, enjoying the time away from his father.

His fiancé sighed and turned back to Videl, who asked, "Whenever you're ready."

Akane took up her stance, already in her gi, feeling her heart rate increase in slight excitement. "Let's go."

The two girls fairly leapt at each other, excited and invigorated by the prospect of battle.

Akane lashed out with a side kick, but it barely grazed as Videl seemed to spin in midair, driving a backhand into the side of her opponents head. The dirty-blonde girl fell, but managed to break roll into a crouch, jumping up with a hard uppercut that surprised Videl and sent her flying back. The now-Saiyan girl flipped in mid-air, her foot just barely tapping the tile before she charged, hands clawed and arm held slightly back, screaming in challenge as her hair flew nearly straight behind her. Akane stood ready as Videl came at her, suddenly planting a foot and performing a high roundhouse, which Akane barely ducked.

The Saiyan continued her spin for a full three-sixty, and brought her heel down towards the tile. Akane gasped and pushed herself away just in time, rising and pushing off to send a hard elbow at her opponent, who smirked, bending slightly as a slight glow seemed to form around her body. Before Akane could do anything, Videl made a short hop, driving her right knee up into the other girls jaw, shouting, "**Eagle Kick!**" The knee kick drove Akane off her feet, but Videl wasn't finished. With Akane seeming to hang in mid-air the fully changed girl spun, kicking hard with her left leg, and then she spun again, sending a side kick into Akane's chest to send her flying away into a pillar before Videl had even landed, smiling slightly.

Akane fell to the tile, slightly stunned and panting. She looked up, her eyesight a bit blurry as she looked at Videl, who didn't seem to be bothered in the least. "_She's good...and strong. Why...why must every girl I run into be stronger than me?!?_" Akane's sight suddenly cleared as she became enraged. She could almost feel her body drawing her aura, and her strength growing, but she didn't even concentrate enough to finish the process of tapping Goten's energy as she nearly leapt up and ran forward in an almost blind charge at Videl and screaming at the top of her lungs, as mad as anything any of the Nerima crew had ever seen

"What the-" Videl managed, surprised at the sudden speed before she was suddenly sent flying by a hard punch to her jaw, Akane keeping up with her flight as she leapt up high, her dirty-blonde bangs flowing behind her and gazing dispassionately down at Videl for the barest of moments. Time seemed to slow as Akane lashed out with a kick to the other girls gut, crashing her into the tile, with Akane jumping off and back slightly. She quickly grabbed an arm and a leg, pulling and lifting the stunned Videl as she began to spin. Faster and faster she spun, her face a mask of concentration as the two seemed to become a blur before she released her opponent, sending her flying back the direction she came.

"Ok...I've had enough..." Videl grunted as she spun in mid air and quite literally flew at Akane, who gasped in surprise, losing all her internal momentum.

"What? She can fly?!?" She cried before suddenly forced to defend herself from a flurry of punches, as fast if not faster than Ranma's Chestnut Fist attack. She managed to block some, but she rocked a few times from a few blows she couldn't catch, becoming angry at herself for not being able to stop the strikes. This galvanized her and she returned the favor, swinging her toned arms as precisely and quickly as possible while trying to block at the same time. Videl had to do the same, and it became a seesaw battle as they spun several times, striking, blocking, and kicking, eyes locked on each other as they gave all, not breaking stride as everyone else watched, even Vegeta.

"Humph. This should have been over long before this." He muttered.

"They're supposed to just be sparring, not trying to kill each other." Krillin interjected

The Saiyan glared at Krillin, responding, "Try telling them that."

Shampoo watched the fight, slightly curious and concerned. The violent girl seemed to be much stronger, though she still lacked a polish and smoothness to her moves. Still, she and the pupil less eyes were clearly enjoying themselves, and not holding back much.

"How angry girl get so much stronger?" She asked herself, rubbing her chin and contemplating how she came to this strength and hoping it hadn't been in training with Ranma. Fate had reserved that right to her after all.

Ryoga watched as well, as much in awe as being love struck...which was rather normal.

"Akane...you've improved so much. Oh my sweetness, if only I could free you from your commitment..." He trailed off from his musings as images of marriage, followed by some very wild and kinky honeymoon thoughts came to him. This in turn prompted a blood spurt from his nostrils.

Again, this was rather normal.

Ranma watched out of the corner of his eye, silently evaluating Videl. "_She's practiced. Pretty good form, strong style. She's better than Akane, and Shampoo."_ He thought, watching her motions closely, looking for holes in her attacks and motions.

Suddenly the two flew back, having driven a punch and a knee into each other and falling to their rears, looking for all intents and purposes finished.

It was a draw.

The two girls panted lightly, gazing at each other in appreciation. "You're pretty strong Akane. Not to shabby." Videl said as she caught her breath.

"You're not too bad yourself." Akane replied, panting a little longer. In truth she barely kept up. She was trying to keep from bringing out her aura in an attempt to force her body and skills to improve the hard way, but it was very difficult to not give into the temptation. The power was just so exhilarating to her, almost like a drug. Still, she knew that she had to get her body used to such power, and to improve her skills first.

"Thanks. I try." Videl smiled cutely, holding up two fingers in a V shape. Akane smiled back as Gohan walked over and taking a seat before draping an arm over Videl's shoulder.

"You did great." He said warmly, causing her to blush a little and lean into him.

Looking on both Akane and Shampoo felt twinges of jealousy that they didn't get the same kind of treatment, and they both looked to Ranma at the same time. However, they noticed their rival gaze at him and instantly turned evil glares to each other and growled slightly. Glares so evil sparks seemed to fly in midair.

For his part Ranma was oblivious to the sparks and glares. He stood up and stretched a bit, and then asked, "So when do we eat? And where can we put our stuff?"

Dende smiled slightly. "We've some rooms for you to stay in here. They're not much but I hope they'll be enough for you."

"I'm happy with anything." Ryoga replied, having managed to finally get his blood letting problem under control. He stood up, picking up his pack.

"Excellent. Mr. Popo will show you the way, and afterwards we'll have a meal for you." The Namek turned to the black being, who nodded.

"Right this way." He said, turning and heading towards the marble structure.

The Nerima folks grabbed their gear and, for whatever reason, seemed to be taking the two Nameks in stride, though they had never seen one before. Most likely the dragon killed all shock in them and they couldn't handle anymore...but it was impossible to tell.

Piccolo gazed at them as they walked in and grunted slightly. "Why do I get a bad feeling about them being here?" He asked aloud.

"They don't seem all that bad Piccolo." Gohan replied, rubbing Videls shoulder...who purred slightly in response. Her own hand was on his hip, though she was tempted to move it elsewhere.

"Regardless, I feel as if something bad is on the Earth now, and I can't place it." He sighed, deciding that Toltir had a hand in it more than anything.

"They're weaklings. Nothing I can't handle." Vegeta commented, arms still crossed as he leaned against a pillar.

"You don't really think they're going to need being handled do you? They're just here for training after all." Krillin spoke up, moving very slowly to keep from ruining his outfit. 18 stood nearby, mentally evaluating her bust size in comparison to the young Amazon and finding them equal.

"Ask if I care. If Kakarott wants to train them that's his business. I have no interest either way." Vegeta responded.

"It didn't look that way to me..." The big former monk said conspiratorially. "I saw you watching them, and smiling. You want to fight them."

In response Vegeta just glared, and then looked away, grunting. Krillin smirked triumphantly.

"Regardless, we still have our own problems to deal with." Bulma's young voice spoke up, still annoyed with Goku for leaving her child behind.

Tien swished his hair behind his head again, commenting, "Nothing we can do until that barrier is up. After that, we'll just have to come up with a solution on our own."

"What solution? You heard Shenron, he can't change us back!" Bulma shot back at Tien, who held his hands up in surrender.

Videl looked to the ground somewhat morosely. She wasn't so sure she wanted to be changed back.

Goku came out of the clouds, and they could see a near perfect copy of the Jepoc Circle islands in the middle of the ocean. Waves crashed against the new formations, while the center appeared to be calm, with only the tiniest spit of land in the center.

Cologne nodded from her perch, adjusting the small satchel she had brought. Where she carried it on her small frame was impossible to guess. "This will be perfect. It will take me a few minutes on each island to get the wards set properly."

"No problem." Goku said cheerfully as he alight the nearest island with a soft tap of boot on rock. Without a word Cologne hopped off, and began to work.

The work too nearly ten minutes each time, and Goku simply sat and watched intently as she worked. A group of birds had already begun to make their homes on the rocks, finding them to be a perfect break for them during their own travels.

Finally she finished on the last island. "These wards will protect your planet for a very long time. I'm sure your Dragon can recharge them when needed, it doesn't take much." The old midget said as she walked up to Goku, who smiled.

"Ok. Well, we should get going then." He said, standing up.

Cologne nodded. "Indeed. I would like to see how my granddaughter and Son-in-Law are doing." She hopped up onto his shoulder as he lifted two fingers to his head. With a slight blur they vanished...

...and reappeared in what would appear to be a warzone. Ryoga and Vegeta glared at each other, sparks flying, a solitary roll of bread between them and knives held at the ready. Ranma was running around the room trying to avoid Shampoo, who was trying to feed him, and Akane, who was trying to kill him for supposedly accepting it, running over Krillin several times in the process.

Videl and Gohan were downing pasta at a rate only Saiyans could handle, completely unconcerned by all around them, while Bulma ate a little slower, trying to be proper in spite of her age. Piccolo, 18, Dende and Popo just gazed on quietly. All didn't even notice Goku and Cologne, both of whom stood watching with sweat slightly rolling down the side of their heads.

They looked at each other, and they laughed slightly. "Well, things are at least somewhat normal." Goku chuckled lightly.

**_Moments before the barrier was in place, somewhere far away from the Lookout..._**

A young girl of about sixteen, but looking almost twelve sat curled up in an alley way, her red hair mussed up badly and her school outfit slightly torn and dirtied from some scuffle that had happened earlier. Her arms were wrapped around her legs, only her bright green eyes looking over her knee caps, flashing with a hidden rage that didn't show in her body. Water trickled down her face and body as a slow steady rain fell with a soft patter.

"_Anger. It is all I've felt my entire life. Everything taken from me, denied me at every turn. All I have ever had was rage, rage at those people at the schools, at all those who mocked me. Shunned me because I dressed different. Because I didn't develop like them. All the popular kids, kicking me to the side, shunning me. No matter how smart I was...it was never enough."_ She thought to herself as she trembled slightly, some from the injuries she had taken nearly two hours earlier, but mostly from trying to contain the powerful emotions roiling within her.

"_I will get my revenge. I'll show them all. I'll get better, and stronger. Strong enough to beat down everyone who held me down, who mocked me and scorned me."_ A small hand balled up into a fist as she mentally swore this oath.

"**_And so you shall._**" A deep voice boomed in her mind, startling her and making her jump up, her shoes splashing in a small puddle.

"Who-who's there?" She called, looking around wildly, expecting another attack. What she got was completely unexpected.

A flash of a purplish-white energy suddenly struck her from above, trailing over her wet body and surrounding her in a large bubble. She had instantly arched her back from the strike, her eyes wide and her jaw dropped in a silent cry as more and more tendrils of energy flowed over her, sparking and crackling, her ruined outfit and hair fluttering around her as the wind picked up

The alley was filled with shadows from the flashing lights, and every so often her shadow would be silhouetted showing her contorting and moving about, her hair and skirt fluttering. As the flashes grew in frequency energy bolts would lash out and strike the brick walls and metal dumpsters, and her shadow could be seen more and more often, seeming to be taller, fuller and lither...and over the crackling of the bolts, the growing howl of the wind another sound could be heard growing, first hesitantly, and then stronger and with glee and even a tinge of madness.

A sound of laughter.

_**To Be Continued...**_

_**I am SOOO evil...all this time waiting and I give you a cliffhanger...ah well, it's better than nothing right? - **_

_**Anyways, sorry for the delay, and just so you know, due to a bluff gone bad with Antyep, I have four more chapters to write, and he'll have a surprise for you all. **_

_**So keep watching...I've got more coming. Next time, we return to Goten and Trunks as they inevitably seem to find trouble...or maybe it finds them? And training continues at the Lookout.**_

_**BTW, would someone be so kind as to hook me up with some information, maybe an image of this Toltir god? I'd greatly appreciate it. **_

_**¤§¤**_

_**RBLM1A2Tanker**_


	20. Chapter 17: Trunks and Goten vs Miss Hin...

**_DBZR 1/2_**

**_Chapter 17: Trouble; Trunks and Goten VS Miss Hinako._**

The sun rose slowly in Nerima, birds chirping happily. Everything was actually peaceful, with no explosions, battles, or outright destruction in what seemed like many days. The people of the district were beginning to entertain hopes that maybe, just maybe the Wrecking Crew had parted ways as suddenly as they had come together.

But Fate reserved the right to dash their hopes. And do so with gusto.

"Come on Trunks! Give me back that rice ball! I saw it first!" Goten cried, running after Trunks. Both had their weapons on their backs, but neither were drawn. The lavender haired child had a decent lead, a well packed rice ball between his hands as he grinned widely. They had been at the Tendo Dojo having lunch with a still crying Soun Tendo, a beautific Kasumi, and stoic Genma Saotome, which the half-Saiyans had done a good job of not cleaning them out.

But now…Trunks had the last rice ball…and was running for his life on a merry chase down the streets. "You saw it, but I got it first! Ha ha!" He taunted over his shoulder when suddenly he found himself flying through the air, quite against his will. "Waaaaah!" He cried, arms flailing, sending the rice ball flying back over his head.

With a small leap Goten flew up and caught it before it fell to the pavement, grinning and laughing wildly. "Ha ha Trunks! I've got it now!" He yelled as he landed a couple of feet away from his sprawled out friend, and then devoured the rice ball before anything else could happen.

Trunks grumbled from his spot on the pavement, before slowly picking himself up and dusting his clothes off. "You got lucky. Next time it'll be mine!" He vowed as he turned around, looking for whatever it was that tripped him.

It was a young girl, looking no older than him, sitting on the pavement and looking like she was about to cry. Trunks instantly felt bad. He ran over a little girl! "Awww man…" He muttered, rushing over to her and helping her up. She wore what looked like a yellow sundress of sorts, though it looked rather large on her thin frame. Her brown hair went down to her rear it appeared, with cute and wide blue eyes. "I'm sorry, I didn't see you.."

"You ran over me! Me, a teacher! How could you do that?" The girl cried, waving her arms about rapidly.

"Wha..hey, I said I was sorry! I helped you up and everything, what more do you want?" Trunks said, backing away and holding his hands up defensively.

"Are you a delinquent?" She suddenly asked very serious, eyes slightly wide as she gazed at the boy.

"Yea, he's a delinqant…delinkent…" Goten replied, trying to work around the unfamiliar word, though he had no idea want it meant.

"No I'm not! You don't even know what a dealy quant is!" Trunks called back, glaring.

"Neither do you!" Goten returned, glaring back.

"I sense fighting spirit…and you're both armed? You both must be delinquents!" She jumped back away, a small coin with a hole in the center of it between two of her fingers.

"What's she doing?" Goten asked, scratching the back of his head.

"I have no idea…" Trunks replied, raising an eyebrow as she swung her arm around in a wide circle, spouting some kind of gibberish he didn't understand at all. Suddenly she finished the circle and brought her arm straight out in front of her, her eyes determined, hair fluttering behind her.

**"Happo Five-Yan Satsu!" **

**

* * *

**

Ukyo sighed as she walked along the sidewalk, her huge spatula behind her back. She had wanted to go with Ranma and the others, but she didn't think she could have left her restaurant for too long a period of time. Bills had to be paid after all.

Still, she was depressed by it. He was to be hers…but with Akane and Shampoo there with him, he'd probably forget about her. It wasn't that she wasn't pretty, though she didn't really think of herself in such terms. It was just that he would be too busy being competed over by those two.

She sighed again, before she hardened herself. "My love, I will not give up! I'll find a way to make myself stronger, so I can be the fiancé you deserve!" She clenched a fist up before her, a determined look on her face. Just as she finished her statement, a large flash appeared followed by a loud, surprised cry from what sounded like two children ahead caught her attention.

"What was that?" She exclaimed, breaking out into a run. Coming around a corner she brought herself up short at the sight before her.

Miss Hinako, holding her trademark five-yen piece out before her, was draining the energy of Trunks and Goten!

"Oh no! Not her! And Ranma isn't here to hit her pressure points!" Her eyes widened in shock as the two boys stood before her, fists clenched as green waves of energy flowed from their bodies and through the small hole in the center of the coin.

And before their eyes, the young girl began to age, getting taller, fuller, lither, as her waist pinched inwards as an incredibly full bust line expanded and filled out, threatening to spill over her dress which conformed to her curves perfectly. She laughed slightly as she gazed at the boys with her now adult eyes.

"Delinquents must be dealt with quickly, before they become disruptions to all around them." She said with a silky smooth voice.

Ukyo had to repress some jealousy at the incredible body Hinako now possessed, just like every other time she saw the technique get used. Course she was never alone, almost all the girls of the school felt the same way when she transformed like this.

Trunks and Goten fell to their knees, and then catching themselves on the pavement, breathing hard as she stopped draining them of energy, still smirking slightly at them.

"Miss Hinako...they're only kids!" Ukyo cried.

She shrugged and closed her eyes slightly for a moment. "All the more they learn their lesson now before their delinquency sets in." She opened her eyes, smiling, and then her smile vanished, eyes widening in surprise.

Trunks and Goten pushed themselves back up, and slowly stood once more, their eyes narrowed in annoyance. "Wow…that was a rather good trick…it felt like she was taking my energy!" Trunks said aloud, hands clenched in fists.

"Yea, I know what you mean." Goten replied, hands also clenched as he gazed at her with little kid anger. He was innocent, he didn't trip on her!

"That's what she does; she drains your aura, even if you're suppressing it! Be careful guys, only Ranma knows how to stop her!" Ukyo said, drawing her spatula from her back. She wasn't sure if it would work, but she was willing to leap between the now older woman and the boys and use it as a shield.

A small crowd of people had appeared by now, one of them being Nabiki. She had followed after the boys at her own speed and had just caught up. Currently she was taking pictures of Hinako like mad, yen signs dancing in her head.

To her and Hinako's surprise, both boys laughed. "We can stop her easy!" Trunks said, rather overconfidently.

"Yea, if Ranma can take her, we can take her!" Goten grinned as the boys took up their respective fighting stances.

Hinako's eyes narrowed. "So you're stronger than you appear. It doesn't matter though. All of your energy will be mine, and you will learn your lesson." She held her hands before her in the shape of a triangle.

**"Happo No Yen Coin Return!"** She cried. A powerful looking amount of energy formed between her hands, and fired faster than Ukyo could move to block, and faster than the two boys expected. It slammed into them, sending them crashing against a concrete wall along the road and leaving slight imprints.

"Ow….that hurt!" Goten muttered, rubbing the back of his head. He looked back at Hinako, and she was once again a child, her face as determined as before.

"She blasted us with the energy she took! Not a bad trick." Trunks commented, before they both stood up.

"Time to show her our trick. **Hah!**" Trunks grinned, before powering up to Super Saiyan. A powerful golden aura flowed around him as his hair stood upright and golden, eyes cyan.

"**Hah!**" Goten cried as he followed suit, dust billowing away from them as the distinctive warble filled the air.

Hinako blinked in surprise. "Wow…that's new. They're got very strong energy!" She almost squealed in delight as she pulled out another coin, a 50 yen piece.

"Let's get her Trunks!" Goten said, bending over, ready to run forward.

"Yea!" At that moment both of them took off running, charging at the girl who now held her arm out before her.

Ukyo's eyes widened as she turned to the two demi-Saiyans. "No! Get away!" She cried as she rushed to get between them.

"**Happo Fifty-Yen Satsu!**" Hinako cried at the same time.

A brilliant yellow flash of light filled the air, and the two boys stopped in mid-charge, grunting as they felt their power being pulled to the girl, their aura's flickering and flowing towards her as they tried to maintain the power levels.

Ukyo stopped short, barely avoiding entering the draining zone, when she noticed something odd was happening to Hinako. Her eyes were wide, mouth dropped open in shock as the power just kept flowing into her. So far she hadn't changed, except in her expression.

"Don't…let…her…win Goten…" Trunks ground out, cyan eyes flashing as he drew more power, trying to keep from being drained.

"I'm…trying…" Goten muttered, doing the same as Trunks. Their aura's continued to be pulled into the coin and into Hinako's body as she made small little gasps.

Finally, Ukyo noticed something happening to the girl. Her body was slowly growing, but it wasn't in the usual matter. Her hair was fluttering, slowly rising upwards with her as her arms and legs began to gain bulk. Her bust expanded like before, but it didn't look nearly as supple as before, looking slightly smaller, firmer as she aged. Her eyes slowly changed color, taking on the cyan look of a Super Saiyans as her muscles continued to grow. Her outfit, always tight before when she transformed, became skintight, adhering to every new tone line she now had as she reached her adult form. Her brown hair remained above her head, with the tips slowly going golden.

"Oh no…boys! Stop it! You must stop now!" Ukyo cried, but the kids weren't paying attention, their aura's flaring more than before. Desperate, she rushed forward and smashed both kids aside with her spatula, finally ending the drain.

"Ow!" Trunks yelled, rubbing his side from where the spatula hit. "Why'd you do that for?"

"Look! Look what your aura's did to her!" The chef replied, pointing at the transformed Hinako, who still had a tightly muscled arm pointed forward, the coin still between two fingers.

"Whoa…she looks really different." Goten commented, working his way to a standing position. He felt a little drained, which wasn't a surprise seeing how much energy she pulled from them both.

"Yea…maybe we should get out of here…" Trunks took a step back, seriously considering making a leap for the air to fly away.

Hinako's fingers suddenly crushed the coin before closing into a fist, her body trembling as she lowered her arm beside her. "Such…power…" She mumbled softly, as she brought her arms up along her side slowly until they where parallel to the ground.

Suddenly her eyes widened, and she raised her arms above her head, which ripped the sleeves of her dress, thrusting her firmer chest up into the air as she cried out loudly, eyes closing tightly. A brilliant glow surrounded her and expanded outwards, her arms dropping quickly down to the side, fists clenched as she leaned back, still crying out as she powered up for the first time in her life.

"Uh oh…this isn't good." Trunks said quietly, his body gone cold. Goten simply nodded, a look of surprise and slight fear on his face.

"What's wrong?" Ukyo asked, her spatula held before her. "Besides the obvious." She thought to herself as she watched Hinako, the hairs on the back of her neck rising.

"She's powering up, and she's stronger than us."

Ukyo looked over at the boys, who were still transformed, sharply. "What? She's stronger than you two? How's that possible?"

"How should I know!" Trunks retorted. "She just is now!"

Ukyo's mind raced, but she forced herself to calm down a bit. "Ok, look, she may be stronger, but she doesn't know martial arts to speak of except that energy drain and return blast. You can run rings around her. Just get her to fire that blast and she'll return to normal!"

"Easy for you to say." Trunks muttered, standing and taking up his stance. Beside him Goten did the same

"**Delinquents!**" Hinako roared, her eyes open now and blazing. The sleeves of her dress were tattered up to her elbows as she straightened, bending forward slightly as if to charge. "**You will learn your lesson!**" That said she rushed forward, one arm back and the other forward, her now spiked hair flowing behind her.

"Scatter!" Ukyo cried, jumping clear and throwing one of her throwing spatulas into the ground before the transformed woman. Trunks leapt up into the sky while Goten ran in a panic towards a building and then ran up the wall. The small crowd of watchers quickly took note of this and ran for the trees, buildings, cars, anything that would get them clear.

Hinako crushed the spatula completely, not slowing or tripping in the least as she chased after Goten up the wall, who was now screaming his head off. "**AAah! Get away get away get away!**" He cried, just before Hinako grabbed him by the power pole strapped across his back. With deceptive ease she pulled him back over her head, sending him flying down at the pavement, crashing into it painfully. Hinako pushed off the wall and flipped gracefully, before landing on the pavement.

Trunks flew around and then behind the woman, before crashing into her back. She jolted forward a step or two, but then quickly spun around, grasping the boy tightly and twisting him until his head aimed at the ground. With no regard towards thinking this might kill him she slammed him down towards the pavement.

At the last second Trunks planted his hands, catching him before he connected, and then spun his legs around in a scissors kick, knocking her arms away and slamming into her stomach. By this time Goten had recovered and had crawled under her legs, tripping her when Trunks kicked her.

She fell over, landing on her rear before she tucked in and rolled backwards, coming up on her feet. The boys didn't give her a chance to do anything more as they quickly charged forward, punching and kicking as quickly as possible. Hinako was on the defensive, managing to block or deflect the incoming attacks but was still being driven backwards.

Catching it all on film was Nabiki, who was almost in a state of sexual bliss from the fight. Or more specifically from the idea of the huge amount of money she would make off this. "This is better than any of Ranma's fights by far!" She grinned, a video camera on a tripod.

Where she got the video camera or tripod is beyond anyone's guess.

Ukyo was of the same agreement with Nabiki. This was the first time she had really seen Super Saiyans fight, and it was just astounding her. She could barely see their movements, it was all a blur to her. But Hinako wasn't fighting like she usually did. At the rate she was going, she'd never release the energy she stole. She was too aggressive, fighting hand-to-hand. It wasn't her style. "This doesn't make any sense. She drained them, and is now acting like some…wait…" Something dawned on her.

"She drained them…and now she's fighting like this! That's it! It's that strange energy of theirs making her do this!" A loud crash interrupted her.

Hinako had managed to turn the tables, and had kicked Trunks away and into a car before backhanding Goten away into a concrete wall just a short distance away from his friend.

"Ow…man, she's kinda tough. I thought that Ranma guy could beat her?" Trunks grumbled as he pulled himself out of the ruined vehicle.

Ukyo ran over, while Hinako just gazed at them dispassionately. "Boys, you have to fight her at a distance. She's fighting this way because of the energy she stole from you. It's making her too aggressive."

Goten moaned a bit. "Great…"

"You have to get her to fire that blast at you. It's the only way."

"Well we can't do it here, there's too many people." Trunks retorted, still eyeing the woman across from him.

"Then fly, get her to shoot up at you!" Ukyo responded, looking over at Hinako who was slowly walking over towards them. Even in her super powered state she walked with incredible grace, hips swaying gently.

"It's worth a shot. Let's go Goten!"

Goten looked at Trunks and nodded. "Right!" As one they both leapt up into the air, flying above the buildings…and then proceeding to taunt Hinako.

"Mleh! Nanana, you can't get us!" Trunks yelled, sticking his tongue out and pulling down on an eyelid. Goten smacked his rear at her, laughing.

Ukyo sighed and hung her head. "_That's not what I had in mind…but I hope it works."_

A vein throbbed on Hinako's temple as she ground her teeth. "You both are delinquents of the highest order! You must be destroyed!" Bolts of energy shot around her frame as she formed her hands into a triangle, aiming it at the boys in the sky. "**Happo No Coin Return Multi Shot!**"

Ukyo gasped as a series of smaller, powerful bolts shot from the older woman's' hands, slicing through the air with unerring accuracy, causing the boys to stop their antics and dodge or deflect. "Geez, where'd she get **that** idea?" She muttered irritably, noticing that she wasn't returning to normal yet, even though she continued to fire bolts of energy.

"She's not using enough energy…it needs to be more powerful." She growled, annoyed that they weren't making a dent in her power yet.

Apparently the two boys figured it out as well, and quickly fired several blasts back at the woman, blasts that were more powerful than hers. Goten followed it up by pulling out his power pole. "Power Pole extend!" He cried. Instantly the weapon grew longer, slamming into the woman's gut and then up into her chin as one of Trunk's blasts slammed into her, sending her flying into the pavement. "Power Pole retract!"

"..W-why you…" She ground out as she pulled herself out of the small crater she was in, and again cupped her hands in a triangle, screaming, "**Happo No Coin Return Full!**" The energy crackled as it gathered, before blasting upwards at the boys in the greatest burst she had ever released. A continuous burst of yellow power that rushed up and slammed into the two child Saiyans, who managed to catch the blast with their hands, grunting as they worked hard to keep from being pushed away or worse, obliterated.

All gathered gazed at this explosion of power, some with awe, some in fear, and others cheering for the boys.

Ukyo looked back and forth, and finally began to notice Hinako's body loosing its muscle tone, the hair losing the gold as it began to flutter in the wind. "It's working!" Ukyo said, smiling, before looking up and calling to the boys, "It's working! Keep it up just a little bit longer!"

"Easy…for…her to…say…" Trunks grunted, feeling his body slowly getting pushed backwards. Goten didn't respond, trying his best to hold the power at bay.

After several minutes, Hinako finally regressed to her normal child state, the power burned out of her, completely gone. Her eyes closed as her arms dropped to her sides, slowly falling to the pavement. Ukyo quickly leapt and slid underneath the child, catching her before she smashed her face.

Panting, Trunks and Goten landed a short distance away, their hair and eyes returning to normal as they powered down. "That…was tough…almost as tough as my dad." Trunks said breathlessly, waving his stinging hands.

"Yea…mine too…" Goten nodded slightly as they walked over to Ukyo. "Is she alright?" Goten asked plaintively.

"Yea, she's fine. She's asleep. Probably too much energy for her to handle, drained her in reverse." She said, looking up at the boys and showing Hinako's sleeping form, the sleeves still ripped. The chef stood up, her spatula on her back again as she lifted Hinako gently. "I'll need to take her to her home so she can rest. You boys head back to the Dojo, you both look kind of tired too."

"Yea..heh heh…" Goten giggled slightly, eyes half-open.

At that moment Nabiki walked up, dusting off her shorts. "Looks like you guys did pretty good. Nice work. It's not often anyone other than Ranma can handle Miss Hinako."

Of her camera and tripod, there was no sign.

"Yea…we did it." Trunks chuckled tiredly. Suddenly a deep roar filled the air, and both children grasped their stomachs. "…um…Nabiki…could we stop somewhere to eat first? I'm starving!"

"Me too!" Goten exclaimed.

Sweat rolled down the side of a startled Nabiki's head, her eyes wide. "But…you just ate!"

"Yea, but we've had our energy drained and everything…it makes us hungry!"

Nabiki shivered, worried that maybe she should do some doctoring of the footage so Hinako was showing more skin, which in turn would have raised the price. At the rate the boys were going, she'd only manage to break even.

"Uh…s-sure…we'll stop by Cologne's place." She finally said.

"Yay!" Goten and Trunks said at the same time, still looking tired but at least happy that they'd be getting food now.

Ukyo just shook her head and headed out to drop the girl off, while Nabiki took the boys hands and lead the way.

**_To Be Continued… _**

Yea yea, I know. I promised four more chapters months ago and didn't follow up on it. Sorry, but this was a really good semester and I couldn't allow myself to be distracted in the least. Forgive me for that.

But hey, at least I haven't lost my touch right? How many Super Hinako's have YOU see? - Sure we didn't get back to the Lookout, but I think this worked out in the end. Hope you enjoyed. I sure did. Might even have an image of Super Hinako appear sometime.

Until next time…

¤§¤ RBLM1A2Tanker


	21. Chapter 18: Back to Training

**_DBZR 1/2_**

**_Chapter 18: Back to Training_**

The sun rose slowly over the horizon on Earth, bathing everything in its gentle early morning caress, just as it had done many mornings before. Below the inhabitants of the world would be awakening from a deep slumber, greeting the morning with a series of moans and groans before continuing on with their lives.

However, at the Lookout, there were some who had been up long before the sun had arrived.

A creature of habit, Ranma had arisen early, stretching out and performing some actual katas for the first time in a long while. Surprisingly, Akane, Shampoo, Ryouga and Cologne were up as well, performing their own respective styles katas or stretches while doing their best to ignore each other.

Well…to say that they were all performing their own respective styles katas would be stretching the truth.

Shampoo, wearing a nearly skintight white Chinese outfit cut to fit, the legs ending halfway up her calves and the sleeves well clear of her wrists, was conducting some very provocative stretches almost directly in line with Ranma's line of sight; however, the martial artist was too caught up in his katas to notice. This drove Shampoo to make the moves even more provocative, with her crowning achievement of doing the splits and then placing her head on the tile, her full bust arched upwards towards the sky in a pose that would have made any man just lose all control right then and there…

…Except Ranma had his back to her at that moment though, so he didn't see it. Ryouga though would be found passed out on the tile, a couple small streams of blood flowing from his nose.

Akane had seen all of the Chinese girls antics, and was currently red in the face in rage at her. And at Ranma as well, for he had to have somehow suggested it to her. Oh sure, he wasn't paying attention, playing the stoic and serious martial artist, but she was almost positive that he secretly enjoyed it. "Pervert…" She muttered in a low growl, firing off several rapid reverse punches.

Cologne could only sigh at the sight of nubile flesh contorting in such ways. How she longed for such days again, but that was nothing more than wistful thinking, and detrimental to her goal of getting Ranma and Shampoo together.

Still, the idea of a dragon that could grant wishes was intriguing. _"If Shampoo is unable to complete the task, than I'll have to take matters into my own hands." _She thought to herself as she balanced on her stick perfectly, executing several quick jabs of her fingers to invisible foes pressure points.

Just inside one of the towers, watching the group warm up, arms crossed over his chest, Vegeta snorted. "What a waste. Only the old woman and the red-shirted boy are of any use, and she would be smashed like a bug in an instant."

"I think you're dismissing them far too quickly Vegeta." Goku replied, leaning on the railing as he watched. "They're all martial artists-"

"Of course they are." The Saiyan Prince interrupted, and then pointed at the still prostrate and rather frustrated Shampoo. "Clearly those stretches are designed to completely loosen up all the muscles at once." He said sarcastically.

"You really think so?" Goku blinked, looking again. Vegeta just smacked his forehead.

"No you idiot, and that was my point! She's not focused, and neither is the boy with the bandana or the other girl. They're too busy focusing on each other and not their techniques. They lack discipline! Kakkarot, what you do with them is your business and I could care less, but you're wasting your time."

Goku just gazed down at them for a few minutes before he looked up at the Prince. "You could help teach them discipline and focus. Especially Akane." He pointed to the distant girl, who was now attempting to beat up Ranma for finally noticing Shampoos body position and trying to help her up. This in turn prompted Shampoo to attack Akane in 'defense of her Airen.'

Vegeta snorted. He watched Akane and Shampoo go at it, watching both women's techniques. Shampoo was clearly the superior, more polished fighter, but Akane was holding her own, for once.

Ryouga, recovered now, was going at Ranma for letting Shampoo beat on Akane, even though he had almost nothing to do with it, and now two full blow battles was in progress.

Vegeta snorted again. "The girl would be a waste of time…hers and mine."

Goku looked up at him after the curious statement.

"She barely listens to her own, what makes you think she'd learn anything from me? I'd tire of her temper and attitude and most likely destroy her on the spot."

"Aww come on! She's got potential, I know you see it!" Goku exclaimed.

"Maybe so, but I would not be the one to try to get her to achieve it. I have don't have the patience or the inclination to train one such as her." Vegeta consented, and then pointed at Ryouga. "That one though I could train."

Just at that moment, an enraged Ryouga cried out **"Bakusai Tenketsu!"** and rammed a finger forward. Ranma leapt back, away from the strike, smirking, when he noticed Ryouga was smirking as well. Too late the pig-tailed young man saw the true target; the tile that was just now in front of him.

With a loud crash, the tile cracked and shattered, sending several shards flying up at Ranma, who managed to avoid being skewered by falling to his back.

Or rather, by tripping on one of the many plants and falling onto his back, but Ranma wasn't one to complain on a sudden fortunate turn of events.

He leapt over the plant, yelling out, **"Moko Takabisha!"** A powerful blue energy blast shot out and crashed into a surprised Ryouga, sending him flying back several feet. Yet he remained standing, even though he smoked slightly, growling in anger.

"Ranma…you're going to pay for that!" He rushed forward, but suddenly found himself with a foot planted in his face. This in turn crashed him into the tile hard, with several little black pigs floating around his dazed head.

Above in the tower Vegeta raised an eyebrow. "He has a potential, but any training he received would be a waste as well."

"Oh? I betcha I could train Ranma to the point no one could beat him." Goku grinned, almost goading the other Saiyan.

A goad that was taken up without a thought.

"Hmph. My son defeated yours in the last tournament. I think we know who's the better trainer."

"I wasn't here to train Goten. This time it'll be different." Goku straightened up, grinning.

Vegeta gave a hard smirk in response. "Very well. We'll see who's the better trainer."

"It's agreed. I'll train Ranma and Akane. You get the other two."

Vegeta blanched slightly at the idea of having to train Shampoo before regaining his stoic gaze. "I have no wish to train the woman."

"Aww come on! I'm training two, you have to as well! It's only fair!" Goku complained.

"Since when has battle ever been fair?"

Goku's eyes narrowed slightly. "If you're so sure of your ability to train, then you should be able to take the same training load as me."

The Saiyan Prince grimaced. Much as he hated to admit it, the taller Saiyan had a point.

"What's the real reason why you don't want to train her?"

Vegeta was quiet for a few moments, looking away from the still ongoing brawl and Goku before he finally muttered, "She's built better than Bulma ever was. Bulma would get the wrong idea."

Goku instantly grinned widely. "You're afraid of little Bulma now?"

How Vegeta's head became larger than Goku stood tall was beyond him, but Vegeta managed the impressive feat as he exclaimed, "No you idiot! I'm not about to risk losing Bulma over some air headed and undisciplined girl just because she's got a bigger chest!"

Goku found himself planted on the floor up against a pillar from the sudden action, eyes wide with beads of sweat slipping down the side of his head. "But Vegeta, I'm sure if you explained to Bulma she'd understand…"

"Then why don't **you** tell her then? I have no interest in finding myself cast out by my wife." Vegeta glared at Goku, almost daring him to try to explain to Bulma.

Goku laughed hesitantly. Truth be told, he didn't want to tell her either. Bulma was known to possess the same power to pull a weapon from apparently thin air as Akane, much like Chi-Chi. And a frying pan seemed to be the standard weapon.

"Eh heh heh…I guess I could tell her..." He started to say when a young voice interrupted him.

"Tell her what?" Bulma asked, yawning. Dressed in rumpled clothing she wiped her sleepy eyes with the back of her hand.

"Ahh…just to tell you that we were thinking of training Ranma and the rest." Goku quickly ad libbed, which received a triumphant smirk from Vegeta.

"Oh. Are you talking about in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber?" She asked, yawning again and stretching. "You should both take two of them at a time then."

"R-really? Who gets who though?" Goku asked, feeling a bit of hope. Vegeta, for his part, looked surprised.

"Yea. Umm…" Bulma trotted over to the railing, looking at the fighting Nerima crew. "How about you get the girl with the blonde streaks, and the boy in the red shirt, and Vegeta you get the other two?"

"Why those two?" Vegeta snorted, though inwardly almost shocked that Bulma would even suggest it.

"Because they're both too focused on the red shirted boy. They'd challenge you instead of just infuriate you like that girl with the blonde streaks would." Bulma appraised honestly.

Goku grinned widely behind Bulma's back as he stood up, almost giggling in his appreciation for his little victory over Vegeta. The Prince glowered back, but finally grumbled aloud, "Fine. I'll train them then."

Bulma smirked. "You don't sound too pleased…you think girls are too weak to be trained?"

"Nonsense. Some of the greatest Saiyan warriors where women.." Vegeta replied, but before he could continue Goku's excitement got the better of him.

"Great! Let's go tell them!" Goku said, practically leaping out of the tower and floating over towards the fighters. Vegeta didn't follow suit in the same fashion, simply floating his way out of the tower and over towards the group, arms still crossed.

Ranma was doing his katas once more, Ryouga out cold, while Shampoo and Akane glared at each other, panting. It was a draw, something Akane had never been able to do on the bustier Amazon.

Needless to say, this rather bothered Shampoo, while it pleased Akane to no end.

"Hey guys!" Goku called, landing on the tile nearby. Vegeta landed a few moments later.

"Good morning sir." Cologne said politely, not breaking from her serene position on the top of her cane.

"Morning Goku." Ranma replied, coming out of his kata easily, while the others also relaxed…mostly. Shampoo and Akane still kept a healthy distance from each other.

Ryouga was just out cold.

Dende walked out from within the Lookout and up to Ryouga, quickly healing the lad without comment. He had already had to heal him and Ranma both at least twice before, so he was coming to accept that this was going to be the way of things while they were there.

"Vegeta and I have decided to split you guys up for training. Ranma, you and Akane will train with me, and Ryouga and Shampoo train with Vegeta."

Shampoo's face fell, as did Ryouga's. "Shampoo no train with Airen? Why not?" She cried, more in annoyance than sadness.

Ryouga was crying rivers of tears though. "Oh horrible Fate, to have me train away from my darling Akane!"

Those two continued on for several minutes, the vein in Vegeta's temple throbbing as he gritted his teeth. Goku gazed at them confused, scratching the back of his head while Ranma's heart sank a bit. He had hoped to train with Goku alone, but he was willing to be flexible. Provided Akane didn't mallet him or something.

Akane though was almost jubilant. Not because she'd be training with Ranma, but because someone was willing to actually bother with training her at all. Ever since her father stopped training, she taught herself, though it had been clearly ineffectual.

Finally Vegeta bellowed. "**Enough!** I've had enough of your blubbering!" The air pushed away from him as his aura flared slightly. The Nerima crew froze for a moment, Ryouga in mid-sniff, while Shampoo stopped in mid plead to be training with Ranma.

"Look at you! Both of you are undisciplined, unfocused! You are worthless as warriors! You're both a disgrace!"

"See here, Shampoo is the strongest warrior in the tribe! Nobody can match her skill!" Cologne exclaimed, though inwardly she was highly pleased at Vegeta's words. She had noticed Shampoos skill degrading, and she was too easy to distract when it came to Ranma himself. _"Finally, someone who can get through to her." _She thought to herself. 

"She's nothing but a disgrace if she's a warrior then! And you…" He jabbed a gloved finger at Ryouga, "…are even worse! At least she manages to focus against her opponent. You waste too much motion and energy in your attacks. There's no thought involved in your style!"

His angry countenance changed to a rather evil grin as he lowered his hand. Ryouga and Shampoo both didn't fear anyone, mostly, but they both positively shivered. Even Cologne felt some trepidation as she gazed at the Prince. "But I'll make you both real warriors. Fighters with no equal."

His two trainees gulped in response.

Goku laughed nervously. "Man Vegeta, you're really laying it on thick aren't you?"

Vegeta turned his grin and gaze on Goku. "Kakkarot, mark my words, I will defeat you, one way or another. I intend to win our bet."

Goku's face instantly became serious, with his self-confident smirk in place. "Alright then. Have it your way. So who goes into the Time Chamber first?"

"We'll settle it the usual way." Vegeta took up a stance, his legs spreading shoulder width, arms raised to his chest, fists clenched.

"Alright…" Goku took up the same stance, grinning.

The Nerima crew quickly backed away, thinking the two Saiyans were about to come to blows. "I'll take my chances over the side if it gets bad." Akane muttered, eyeing the edge of the Lookout.

"You and me both." Cologne whispered, her skin clammy.

"Ready?"

"Ready!"

Both raised their fists into the sky, and then thrust them down between the two. **"Rock! Paper! Scissors!"** They repeated the phrase several times, raising and thrusting their fisted hands forward each time.

The Nerima crew was laid out on the ground in shock.

**"Rock! Paper! Scissors…HAH!" **Both cried, their hands taking up the shape of the weapon they chose.

"Woo hoo! Rock beats scissors!" Goku cried out joyously, while Vegeta glowered.

"I'm beginning to think you're cheating Kakkarot. You won the last one before we fought Majin Buu as well." The Prince grumbled, crossing his arms irritably.

Goku giggled like a schoolboy, grinning. "Don't be a sore loser Vegeta." He turned to his 'students' and clapped his hands in glee. "Ok, grab your things and follow me. We're going to go into the Hyperbolic Time Chamber."

"The whatamawha?" Ranma muttered, blinking in confusion.

Akane was confused as well. "What's that?"

"The Hyperbolic Time Chamber is a special training room. Inside you train for an entire year, but outside only one day will pass."

"Really? A whole year of training in one day?" Ranma's face brightened up, as did the other three Nerima members. Cologne was more thoughtful, but thought it was quite impressive.

"Yup. But it's not going to be easy. It's tough training. Think you guys can handle it?" Goku asked, fists on his hips.

"You bet! Let's go already!" Ranma grinned.

Akane nodded, looking forward to the experience. _"I might just become strong enough to handle even Ranma!" _

"Ok then. Follow me." Goku turned and walked past the still glowering Vegeta.

_"I can at least begin training them while we wait."_ He planned to himself as he watched the other three walk away.

* * *

**_Moments later…_**

"Here we are. Last chance if you guys want to opt out." Goku said. Mr. Popo stood by the door, waiting to twist the golden handle.

"No way, I'm ready for anything!" Ranma grinned.

"Me too!" Akane reciprocated.

"Very well. Inside you'll find everything you need for a whole year. Be careful in there." Mr. Popo said as he twisted the handle and opened it, emitting a bright white light that nearly blinded Ranma and Akane.

Goku immediately walked forward, smiling as he did so. With only the slightest bit of hesitation on both their parts, his new students followed after him, and Popo closed the door behind them.

* * *

**_To Be Continued… _**

Holy…ANOTHER update! Scary isn't it? That's two chapters….two more and I'll have fulfilled my bet to AnT! MWUAHAHA! Next time, we see what the boys are up to once again, watch Drill Sergeant Vegeta train his new students, and what about that girl we saw earlier? Hmmm…developments worth watching I think.

Until next time…

¤§¤  
RBLM1A2Tanker


	22. Chapter 19: All kinds of things going on

_**DBZR ½**_

**_Chapter 19: All kinds of things going on…_**

"Run? Are you crazy? Where are we going to run to-" Ryouga started to complain when Vegeta glared at him, his eyes slightly turning cyan. The teen gulped, and began to run around the rim of the Lookout, Shampoo following right behind him, her buxom body shifting greatly from her motions.

Vegeta glowered, and snorted. "Fools. Kakarott got the better students."

Cologne, serenely balanced on her cane performing another simple kata shrugged imperceptibly. "Don't be so sure. Given time, you'll find those two to be quite the willing student. It just takes a little...effort shall we say, to get through to Ryouga."

The Saiyan Prince turned to look at the old crone. "What kind of effort?"

"I used boulders on him."

Vegeta blinked, and then broke out laughing. "Excellent! That's my kind of training."

Cologne bowed gracefully. "Why thank you. I'm glad you approve."

Vegeta grinned, stowing that little tidbit of information away for future use against Ryouga as the two teens came around the curve of the Lookout, panting heavily. He had ordered them to start running to begin working on their stamina…after he had already forced them to do nearly a hundred pushups and two hundred situps. They were exhausted.

And his training only started less than an hour ago.

"They have a long ways to go. But I will beat Kakarott." Vegeta said aloud before floating up into the air, heading towards his students to provide them some extra 'incentive' to run faster.

"Speed up! You can't possibly be tired yet! We've just begun!" He boomed, his hands glowing with power before he began to throw some low powered blasts at them. Suddenly panicking, the two teens ran even faster as their trainer floated behind them, laughing and throwing out a low powered blast at them on occasion. The shots did no damage to anything they hit, but they certainly got their attention.

Cologne chuckled, and hopped away, looking for a bit of breakfast.

--------

Videl and Gohan watched the training idly, slightly amused at Vegeta's actions. Or rather, Gohan was amused as he watched. Videl was feeling a bit…ornery. She snuggled up against her boyfriend, lightly rubbing his thigh, and starting to think some other, darker, thoughts.

She caught herself when she saw where her hand was about to go and quickly moved it away. _"It's starting to get to me again…I should tell him, so he could use that move on me…and soo many other moves…I mean, the submission move. Gah, this is bad. Only when I'm fighting do I seem to control it. Maybe if I offered to help train those new people with Vegeta or something.."_ She sighed, nuzzling Gohan's chest.

He wrapped an arm around her waist, and asked quietly, "Is it starting to get to you again Videl?"

She nodded. "Yea…but I want to try to control it first. I can't let my body distract me."

"You sure?"

"Yea, I'm sure. Maybe I'll help Vegeta train those two while your dad's with Akane and…what was the other guys name?" She looked up at him.

"Ranma. And that's a good idea. It'll help you get stronger too!" Gohan beamed at her.

She beamed back. "You really think so?"

"Sure! You have a Saiyan body now, there's no telling how strong you can become!" Gohan replied, rubbing her back lightly. Her tail was wrapped around his waist, stroking his stomach, almost as if it had a mind of its own.

"Thanks Gohan! I'll go ask Vegeta if I can help later."

He looked puzzled at her. "Why later?"

She blushed. "Cause I want you now…" She said slyly, and then suddenly shook her head. "Gah…I'm sorry. It slipped out…" She sighed, and then bent her head forward. "I don't think I can control it, and I can't train anyone at that rate."

Gohan nodded, and quickly applied the hold where her neck and head connected. Instantly, she stiffened, and then relaxed, feeling more herself. "Thanks." She said, leaning against him.

"You're welcome." He responded, holding her close, while more soft explosions filled the air, along with the surprised screams of Vegeta's charges and his wild, almost happy laughter.

A rather strange love scene indeed.

------------------

_**Far away from the Lookout…**_

Students, dressed in plain yet still tasteful school uniforms, milled about, moving to lockers or classrooms as the ambient sound of hundreds of voices filled the air inside the drab, rectangular building. The lighter tones of laughter between friends would sometimes appear, cresting over the ambient conversations before fading away.

Yet, from down the hall the voices slowly began to fade completely as a new presence made itself felt. This presence moved with graceful purpose up the halls as students would clear a path for it. Presently, completely clear path down the halls formed, and this new being could be seen, a towering young woman with slender, long, lithe legs walking forward, one foot in front of the other, causing the hips to sway provocatively, and the mid-length skirt to swish gently.

Voices hushed as she walked by, books in one well toned yet still supple arm, while the other would swing back and forth beside her. Her blouse, no different from any other students, seemed to cling to her ample curves slightly, as did her skirt. Her long, golden red tresses, tied into a thick ponytail behind her, swayed in time with her hip motions, while a smirk played on her full lips.

Every male who saw her was instantly transfixed, and so were many females as well. She was drop dead gorgeous; her powerful green eyes smoked slightly it seemed as she walked, her heels clicking on the tile delicately. Yet it wasn't her beauty that captured them so completely; it was the hidden strength that seemed to radiate from her form, almost as if it was a second person walking beside her. There was power, grace, intellect, and an attitude that seemed almost to look down upon all others as being weaker, not worthy of being in her presence as she walked.

All this drew everyone to her, including many a professor; yet at the same time, it kept them well at bay. Nearly everyone she encountered, for her looks, her intellect, or her strength desired her. But none approached her.

None, except for the local clique; the group of the hottest girls in the school, brought together specifically because they were the hottest, and everyone knew it. They controlled many with the barest of flickers of their eyelashes, using their looks to get everything they wanted. Not necessarily the most academically bright, as they managed to slide by on their looks, and were insanely jealous of anyone who made them feel inferior in any way.

Their favorite target to vent their frustrations was "The Shrimp." One of the most intelligent girls in the school, yet the most undeveloped one, and the weakest. She was sixteen, yet looked twelve, and was very easy pickings for bullying. Not that The Shrimp never fought back; she fought back every time, either with words or her fists. And she lost every time as well.

Now…now there was a hot new girl who appeared on the scene, and she didn't seem to be inclined to join them. This was not acceptable to the clique. Even now they were gathering together indignantly, and were walking down the hall from the opposite end. Students cleared away from them as well; although, their attention was focused mostly on the new girl.

The clique stopped in the middle of the hall, smiling sweetly at the girl who was nearly a foot taller than all of them, and built better as well. She stopped in front of them, one leg slightly cocked forward, as if she was paused in mid-step and ready to keep walking, the slight smile still on her lips. Their leader, who was the hottest of the group, a short-haired, skinny, busty girl walked forward a step, looking up at the taller woman. "Hi, we're the Kirei Suteki-dan and we'd like to welcome you to our school. And since you're so new…" She took another step in an attempt to show dominance…and failing quite badly in all departments. Looks, height, physical presence; she was dwarfed by this other girl. That didn't stop her from trying to take the other girl down a notch.

"…we'll ignore your ignorance on what goes on here. The girls and I are the premiere club on campus, and we want to extend to you an invitation to observe us in our meetings, and around school." In short, she was letting the new girl know that she was welcome to hang with them, but not participate yet. To be a 'groupie' at best.

The girl smiled upwards sweetly, that sweetness covering up a veneer of ugly jealousy, jealousy of this new girl coming in and stealing all, especially her, attention.

The taller girl raised her free hand to her small, smiling lips, her shoulders quivering slightly, her green eyes flashing in mirth as she suppressed a giggle.

The rest of the group glanced at each other in shock. Was this new girl laughing at them? The leader's own smile faded for but a brief moment, and, without looking down, she innocently placed the heel of her one of her pumps upon the foot of the taller girl, and pressed down hard. "We understand each other don't we?" She smiled again, batting her eye lashes.

The taller girl's shoulder shuddered even more, and her giggles could be heard clearly by all around, even as the leader of the group started to grind her foot on hers.

This unnerved and angered the girls and they began to hiss at her. "What's so funny?"

"We're going really easy on you!"

"You'll show us respect!"

Finally, the other girl burst out laughing, long and loud, even though the leader of the club was now clearly grinding her pumps against the other girl: there was absolutely no pain response to it. The rest of the school body that was watching was in shock at this.

After a few moments, the redheaded woman lowered her slender hand and planted it on her shapely hip, her smile still present. However, when she spoke there was undeniable steel in her soft, light voice. "First, I am not new to this school. Second, I won't respect any of you, not for all that you've done to me. Third, you will remove your foot from mine, or I'll do it for you." Her lips were still smiling, but her eyes were burning with pent up rage.

The leader stepped back without thought, in shock at how they were being talked to. "Wha…who…who do you think you are you little slut!"

The instant she said it, the redheaded girl's free hand shot forward and upwards in a powerful slap, so fast none saw the blow connect. The crack of the blow filled the hall, and the shorter girl fell to the floor, landing just well enough to keep her decency, her skirt pooling around her legs as she held her self up off her side, the side of her face a bright red in the shape of the taller woman's hand.

She gazed down at the other girl, her hand on her hip once again as she smiled demurely. "Never call me that again, or you'll find that slap a mere tickle. Also, never call me The Shrimp ever again."

The whole group's eyes widened. "What…you can't be…."

"Yes, it is. I am Shiaku. And you will treat ME with respect from now on. Now get out of my way." She said, before stepping over the fallen girl. In their shock, the other girls simply cleared a path, a couple of them moving quickly aside to avoid possibly being struck while Shiaku sauntered down the hall, once again hips swaying provocatively.

A few girls helped their friend up, making cooing noises of support, and mutterings of how that girl was any number of bad things. But one thing was certain. None of them wanted to face her direct like that again any time soon. They would have to find another avenue of approach, but that would wait for a later time. The leader looked around, and nearly screeched, "What are you all looking at? Get out of here!"

The rest of the student body, just in as much shock as them, quickly cleared out, heading to their classes while passing the rumor around; little Shiaku had grown up and out! And she wasn't putting up with any funny business.

Down the hall, Shiaku was smiling softly to herself. After she had been struck by that power bolt, she found herself a completely changed person, and not just physically. Her body tingled with power, and her mind was filled with the knowledge on how to use it. Not only to tease boys, but how to fight with it, to defend herself and punish those who had wronged her. And there wasn't a thing anyone could do about it.

She intended to get used to her new body for the time being before she moved to crush those girls. Her lips opened in a wider, pretty smile at the thought, while her posterior continued to entrance those she passed on the way to her first class.

-----------

_**Within the Hyperbolic Time Chamber…**_

"Well, here we are!" Goku exclaimed, gesturing to the Spartan accommodations. He pointed out the kitchen, the bath house, and the sleeping quarters, and supply room. All the while, the two Nerima teens gawked at everything. Even though small, everything had a polished sheen, from the golden trim, to the blue tile.

Ranma stepped out onto the foyer that lead out into the rest of the chamber and cried out in surprise. As far as the eye could see, was nothing but a sea of white. No horizon that he could tell, no alternating colors. Pure white. "What…what's this? There's nothing out there! Are we like floatin or something?"

Goku walked out, and then laughed slightly. "Oh no, we're well grounded." He said as he stepped off the final tile step. His boots tapping on what could now be noticed as a slightly off white 'ground' beneath him. He turned and faced Ranma and Akane as she joined him in wide eyed amazement. "See? Careful when you take your first step though. The gravity can change really quickly in here, and so does the temperature."

Ranma blinked and scratched the back of his head while Akane screwed up her courage. "Oh it can't be that bad!" She exclaimed and walked forward.

The instant she stepped off the last step, she found herself planted on the ground, her body struggling mightily to keep from being flattened. She cried out in pain as she tried to push herself up to her knees and hands, veins bulging greatly.

"Akane!" Ranma cried, leaping forward…

And joining her in being planted to the ground with a loud squawk of surprise. Goku simply watched as the two teens struggled, rubbing his chin in thought. "Guess we'll need to work on that bit by bit before you're ready to walk out here for the hard training." He mused aloud as Ranma managed to get up to his knees and hands, his whole body quivering.

With monumental effort he pushed himself off the ground bit by bit, heading back for the step. First he managed to get a hand on the normal gravity area, and with that, began to pull himself up on it, his legs still stuck to the ground as he grunted, sweat completely soaking his red silk shirt.

Akane had barely managed to raise herself up, and was now trying to get to the step, tears of pain and agony flowing down her face. She would not give up! She had to do this for herself!

Finally, Ranma managed to get his whole body onto the tile, his body drained completely as he sprawled out on his back, arms stretched out as he panted heavily.

It was several long minutes before Akane had managed to do the same, her gi completely soaked, all her muscles aching from the effort, her chest moving up and down rapidly with her heavy breathing. "That…that was horrible…" She coughed out.

"Yea…no kidding…" Ranma replied, still on his back, his heart still racing.

Goku calmly walked up so that he was in their sight and looked at them weakly. "I told you guys it wouldn't be easy. We'll work on getting you strong enough to stand out here first, having you practice what you already know before we try to add different techniques. That way you can teach me some of your techniques first."

"I dun wanna go out there…." Ranma gasped weakly, a sentiment Akane was too happy to agree with.

Goku's face hardened. "I know how you guys feel, but if you want to become stronger, you'll have to come out here. Training starts now, so come on. Get up, get some water, and then come back here. We'll work on each body part first, having you extend your arms and legs out over the step to build up your strength." He clapped his hands, urging them up.

Already exhausted, the two teens wearily managed to sit up, and then stand shakily before heading for the kitchen for water. As the two shuffled to the kitchen, they glanced at each other, their eyes saying the same thing.

This was going to be the most hellish training they'd ever do.

_**The following excerpts are from the journals of Akane Tendo, and Ranma Saotome.**_

"**Hey journal. **

**It has been a week now since we first walked in here. I can't believe only a week has passed already, it seems so much longer. Every day we're up early…at least, I think so. There's no day time or night time in here, and it's so white. It's hard on the eyes. Sometimes I think I see things out there. **

**Anyways, everyday we're up early to train. Goku takes this so seriously but he's honest. It's a rather welcome change from the tricks of Cologne and all her attempts to get me to wed Shampoo. I wonder how Shampoo and Ryouga are doing…oh yea, I forgot. Only a day will pass out there while a year passes in here. I forget that a lot it seems, at least when I have a chance to think about it. Master Goku doesn't give us much time to think about other things, he's all about the training. **

**This whole week we've been putting our arms and legs out, and then leaning out over the step, trying to make our bodies stronger, while doing pushups and situps and other exercises. He also has us practice our katas over and over on the step. It's helping, I'm already noticing how much faster my punches and kicks are, even though I'm dog tired.**

**Akane is feeling it a lot. I guess that power transfer thing of Goten's is fading away, cause she's not taking the gravity changes too well, but she's getting stronger too. She's definitely determined to improve. All this training will probably do her some good. **

**We get a couple hour break for lunch, and again for dinner. Master Goku says that after a month the breaks will get shorter. Oh man…I hope not. I'm in such pain now…and Akane's probably worse. She stays in her own little room, and I think I've heard her cry in pain at bedtime. I can't say as I blame her…I've nearly cried from it, manly man or not. Around 9 or so we're let go to clean up and have some personal time. I think Goku goes to train himself during that time; I swear I've heard him screaming attacks out there, but I've been too tired to go look. I might have heard Akane out there too, but that's crazy. **

**Master Goku thinks we'll be able to stand outside the step in another week. He's going to give us tomorrow off so our bodies can recover before we try the next day. I'm going to get some sleep now…god my body aches. It better be worth it."**

**-----**

"**Dear Diary,**

**A week has passed…I've never felt so incredibly tired. I've never trained so hard as I have beside Ranma. Master Goku is tireless, always pushing. It ticks me off sometimes…but I know why he does it. **

**I'm already noticing it working though. I'm feeling stronger than ever, and I know I held my arms out over the step longer than Ranma today. I almost couldn't lift them now to write in this, but I felt I had to. It felt so good to beat him at something! I know he wasn't faking when he finally dropped his arms first. I dropped mine right after him, but I still outlasted him!**

**We've shown Master Goku our style and katas, and he just eats it up! He practices them with us like he had been doing them for years. It's annoying, but he does them so well and has managed to polish them so quickly he's shown me where I've been doing my own moves wrong. He hasn't taught us anything yet, saying he'll start that once we can stand off the step. **

**But I have a secret for you Diary. When Ranma goes to bed…I go out to train some more. Goku trains himself during that time, and it's inspiring to watch him work while I keep putting my body out over the step. He just stands out there, completely focused as he moves. He knows I'm out there, but we just do our own thing. It's the only thing that's allowing me to catch up to Ranma in strength…**

**And my body…god my body hurts so much. It's so much stronger and I know I'm getting better, but the pain sometimes gets to me, and I've cried myself to sleep from it.**

**Tomorrow we're getting the day off. I plan to rest in hot water most of the day. Dr. Tofu told me to do that once after a bad training session where I hurt myself from bad technique. I wish he was here now, those pressure point tricks of his would be handy.**

**I'm going to bed Diary. I hope I don't forget to write in here."**

**-----------------**

_**In the Ranma universe…**_

Trunks and Goten flew over the city of Tokyo, gazing down at all the denizens of Japan curiously before they landed on the top of Tokyo Tower. Other than the excitement of the fight with Miss Hinako, they really didn't have a whole lot to do.

"I'm bored." Trunks muttered.

"Yea. I wish Ranma and the others were here."

Trunks nodded, kicking his feet over the edge of the tower. "There's got to be something to do. Someone should be strong enough to fight or something."

Goten put his hands to the back of his head as he leaned back against the metal of the tower. "But what? We can't fight each other, that Akuma guy might show up or something."

"Yea, I know. Maybe we can see if we can go to a movie or something."

"Yea! That would be great!" Goten said as he jumped up easily. "Come one, I'll race ya!"

Trunks grinned as he floated upwards. "You're on!"

---------

_**Miles away…**_

Deep in the mountainous jungles of Thailand, buried underneath tons of rock and fake Buddhist statuary, pulsed one of the most technologically advanced scientific and communication bases on the planet. Men and women in white lab coats strutted about, clipboards in hand as they checked various instruments in their lab. An eerie greenish glow filled the air, giving everything an almost evil, dark cast to it.

Test tubes were on tables everywhere, instruments hummed along to themselves as they ran innumerable calculations. The source of the greenish glow was a large tank, filled with a greenish, glowing fluid. A small body floated within, a face mask attached to the face. It was a young boy, legs curled up towards his stomach. His hair floated gently in the fluid, with two purple streaks up along the sides.

Across the way was an identical tank, but this one didn't have anything in it currently. It was being prepared for future use.

An emblem was present on everything within this base, from being pinned on coats, to being painted on the floors. A winged skull.

The symbol of Shadowloo. The worldwide criminal organization.

The being floating in the tank was a clone of Gotenks, created from the bloody swab used to treat the fused child's wounds at the nightclub.

Bison gazed at the work impassively as the head scientist approached. "The advanced growth process is working remarkably well, but we are noting a distinct lack of potential power in this body. The normal process will have to be used to get you the soldier you want my Lord."

Bison grunted as he walked forward. "This will be a good prototype then. You're certain that everything this one learns it can be passed onto the permanent version?"

"Absolutely sir." The older, thin man said without pause. "We had excellent success with the Dolls, and we have since improved the process."

"Good." Bison said, gazing at the young child in the tank. "Then we'll arrange for a tournament. Only the best fighters in the world can compete, and we'll enter our own fighter. Gotenks." His face opened widely as he laughed to himself.

Within the tank, the fluid bubbled slightly, and the childs eyes tightened briefly as it clenched its fists before relaxing again, deep in slumber.

_**To Be Continued….**_

_**This was fun to write. Only one more chapter to go before I met the bet I made with AnTyep! Yes yes, I know. I'm slow. But come on…I'm still writing right! **_

_**Tune in next time as we check up on the progress of our trainees, and see the sinister actions of Bison at work. And what of this new girl of the great beauty? What could she be up to? We'll find out!**_

_**¤§¤**_

_**RBLM1A2Tanker**_


	23. Chapter 20: Training in the Chamber

_**DBZR ½**_

**_Chapter 20: Training in the Chamber_**

_**The following excerpts are from the journals of Ranma Saotome, Akane Tendo (to include those of the last chapter).**_

Day 7

"**Hey journal. **

**It has been a week now since we first walked in here. I can't believe only a week has passed already, it seems so much longer. Every day we're up early…at least, I think so. There's no day time or night time in here, and it's so white. It's hard on the eyes. Sometimes I think I see things out there. **

**Anyways, everyday we're up early to train. Goku takes this so seriously but he's honest. It's a rather welcome change from the tricks of Cologne and all her attempts to get me to wed Shampoo. I wonder how Shampoo and Ryouga are doing…oh yea, I forgot. Only a day will pass out there while a year passes in here. I forget that a lot it seems, at least when I have a chance to think about it. Master Goku doesn't give us much time to think about other things, he's all about the training. **

**This whole week we've been putting our arms and legs out, and then leaning out over the step, trying to make our bodies stronger, while doing pushups and sit-ups and other exercises. He also has us practice our katas over and over on the step. It's helping, I'm already noticing how much faster my punches and kicks are, even though I'm dog tired.**

**Akane is feeling it a lot. I guess that power transfer thing of Goten's is fading away, cause she's not taking the gravity changes too well, but she's getting stronger too. She's definitely determined to improve. All this training will probably do her some good. **

**We get a couple hour break for lunch, and again for dinner. Master Goku says that after a month the breaks will get shorter. Oh man…I hope not. I'm in such pain now…and Akane's probably worse. She stays in her own little room, and I think I've heard her cry in pain at bedtime. I can't say as I blame her…I've nearly cried from it, manly man or not. Around 9 or so we're let go to clean up and have some personal time. I think Goku goes to train himself during that time; I swear I've heard him screaming attacks out there, but I've been too tired to go look. I might have heard Akane out there too, but that's crazy. **

**Master Goku thinks we'll be able to stand outside the step in another week. He's going to give us tomorrow off so our bodies can recover before we try the next day. I'm going to get some sleep now…god my body aches. It better be worth it."**

Day 28

"**Hey journal, it's me again.**

**A month has gone by. A whole month. I have never trained so hard under so tough a man before. But it's been paying off so far. I'm tons stronger than I was before. My clothing barely fits me now, and all we've done is practice katas and stick out our bodies over the edge. It's becoming so easy that Master Goku thinks we're ready to step off the ledge. Said something about how we were ready to "take our first steps." I hope so…I'm ready to get into some real training. **

**Our katas are a lot better now, and I've already started to throw in some of the stuff I see Master Goku doing sometimes. He keeps his techniques pretty well hidden, but some things he can't. His Dragon stance is useful, but leans too far forward. It's very offense oriented. So I've modified it. Ya don't lean nearly so far forward now; it's now set so you lean forward still, but you're able to move in any direction far quicker than you could before. Plus your arms aren't so far apart, one held up near your head, the other by your belt line. Master Goku and Akane will probably help me see if it's any good. The hand by the belt seems awkward to me. **

**The past three days we've been relaxing our bodies, but training our minds. Master Goku taught us much during these three days. Like how to sense the chi, or energy as he calls it, of others, how to suppress our own and how to better channel our power. I was a little surprised when I began to sense Akane's power…she's a lot stronger than I thought. Master Goku seemed to be as strong as me, but I know he's suppressing it. I don't have these new tricks down completely, but I will be the time we leave.**

**Sleeping is much easier now. I don't lay in bed in pain for hours before my muscles relax. I learned to channel my chi to take the flow of the pain away. Not quite sure how, but it works. I'm hoping it'll work when I take hits too. **

**He's had me change into my girl form. Says I need to increase my strength as a girl so I'm not taken off guard. Makes sense, but I'm not sure I like it. My clothes barely fit as a guy, but as a girl they're pretty baggy. It just…I don't know, seems weird trying to make my girl body stronger. I've seen what it's been doing to Akane, and it's clearly working for her. She's not getting bigger muscles, but she's definitely a lot more toned than before. It's…well, kinda nice to see. But now I have to become the same way? I was already sexier than her, now she'll become even more jealous! My life sucks sometimes.**

**Well, that's it for now. We're going to step out tomorrow so I best get some sleep. I'm looking forward to the real training."**

Day 44

"**Hey Journal. **

**Been a really long time since I last did this. Master Goku wasn't kidding about the sudden shifts off the step. One minute the place will be cold, the next hotter than any water poured on me has ever been. Gravity gets heavier the farther away we get from the step. But we've done it for so long now, it doesn't affect us. **

**It didn't used to be like that. The first few days we couldn't go too far past the step; but we were already far stronger, so we managed to get over it much quicker. It helped that Master Goku finally had us begin to fight and spar. Akane has really surprised me with how quickly she's picking up this stuff. Guess she just needed someone to actually work with her and help bring her up and deal with her temper. She's managed to get that under far better control, but I still get hammered sometimes. **

**Where does she get that stupid hammer of hers anyways?**

**We've begun to incorporate flying into our katas now. Which makes sense; our style makes use of air techniques as it is, and knowing how to fly adds a whole new way to do some of them. Even Master Goku gets into the sparring. I had to hit him with a reverse Hiryu-Shoten-Ha upside down in mid-air to catch him off guard. Akane then hit him with her hammer, knocking him into the ground. This is how it usually goes for us whenever Master Goku gets involved. We always team up to try to take him down. **

**This time we thought we had him but he suddenly pushed himself off the ground and above us faster than we could track! Then he shot us with a bunch of energy blasts, and man did those sting! I dunno how he fired so many, but he was grinning the whole time. **

**Anyways, he knocked us both down. I tried a new trick I'd been playing with, a chi shield of sorts as a variation of my Moko Takabisha, but it fell apart after two hits. Akane tried to hit them back and even managed to get a few, but then she lost her hammer. Afterwards Master Goku said he was impressed, but said we both had a long way to go.**

**I wonder if I'll survive that long?"**

Day 134

"**Today we finally learned and were taught some of Master Goku's techniques. He told us about the Kamehameha wave, a "Destructo Disk", solar flare, Tri-Beam, Masenko-Ha, teleportation, after-image, Kaio-Ken, even Fusion. He also showed us some combos…the hard way. Getting hit from more than one direction in less than five seconds really hurts. He is just so fast! He pushes us like no body has ever done before.**

**Later on I meditated for a long time on these techniques. Looking for weaknesses, strengths, the usual. My little trick of using my chi to channel pain has been working pretty good. Some of them sound like they take too long to charge up. Useless in close combat. Others would be great for regaining the advantage. I especially like the after-image, teleportation, and solar flare techniques for that. Kaio-Ken looks promising, but I'll have to work on that one for awhile. It just seems to be more a desperation charge than something useful, but I could be wrong. Kamehameha looks the most useful for attacking at long range without killing someone outright, unlike the Destructo Disk. And Tri-Beam? That thing might be helpful, but I'm not sure how yet.**

**I'm not sure what Akane thought, but as usual she's been surprising me. She's hung in there far longer than I thought, and is really showing a knack for coming up with stuff I didn't think she knew. Her power is growing stronger too. Not as strong as mine, but she's improving.**

**There's one technique we both said we wouldn't do: Fusion. I mean, I'd have to be in girl-form, and then we'd be…well….the same person? I know I thought it might be handy before, but, much as I hate to say it, I'd rather Fuse with Ryouga than Akane! That would just be far too weird! I mean…all those girl thoughts going through my-our head. **

**Maybe it's not as bad as I think it would be…but I wouldn't want to try it unless we had no choice. At least we know it if we want to use it. I've gotta hand it to these guys, they know energy attacks.**

**Well, I'm going to get some sleep. We're going to be trying out each technique and I'm definitely going to try to mix things up a bit, add them to what I already know. Might come up with something new?" **

Day 200

"**Not much to talk about today. Lots of training going on for the past few weeks. We've got the new stuff down pretty good, and we seem to have leveled out for the time being.**

**So we took a break from all training for a couple days. Well, I did anyways. I don't know what Akane is up to over in her room. **

**It's kinda nice to have a couple days to just sit back and do nothing, and think over all that's happened. A year has almost passed already, and there's been a lot of changes, to both of us. I had to get my hair cut, otherwise my hair tie wouldn't work. Akane hasn't bothered cutting her hair yet, I think it's down to her back if she untied it. **

**It's odd…when we leave we'll both be a year older. Seventeen. I don't feel like it. But I guess I'm looking it. I am taller, and definitely a lot stronger than I was. Even my girl-form looks older, which is odd. I thought the curse turned you into what had drowned, be it young or old. Maybe it's just the training I've been doing in girl-form that's making it look older. I'm not taller than I usually am in that form. **

**Akane has definitely changed though. She's probably as tall a Nabiki, and…well, she's gotten more curvy like her sisters. Not that I pay attention to that sort of thing. She's also tons stronger than she used to. I doubt she'd bother with the clay blocks after this. She wouldn't be able to find enough to be useful.**

**I have to admit, Akane is looking kinda cute now. That gi of hers is a bit too small now, so I can't help but notice how she's looking in it. Guess I'm kinda getting over my fear of women. Maybe it's just me getting older or something. Meh, she's probably just trying to taunt me, and use her body to distract. Heh, I'm a master of that, especially in girl form. **

**Still, she's come a long ways in her forms. She's a lot more graceful, less tense. She's much quicker, and she hits harder than Taro does. She'd probably give Ryouga a run for his money in toughness too. Secretly, I've kinda admired her stubbornness over time, but I can honestly say that I respect her as a true martial artist now. Master Goku and Akane have both helped me out with that. **

**Now that she's stronger and more confident, she looks forward to our sparring sessions. And honestly, so do I. It's fun now. Then something happens to set her off, and she's back to being an uncute tomboy. And then I get hammered. She has yet to understand that taunting and touching certain areas of her body isn't being perverted; it's throwing off her her focus. Sad that it works still. Master Goku has noticed this and said he's thinking of something to deal with it. I hope it works.**

**At least I no longer think of women as being weaklings. After this, I doubt I'll ever fall under Pop's belief and hitting girls again. Though I still won't start a fight with one. It just doesn't seem right.**

**Hmm…I sense Akane's power rising. I might have to check this out later. For now I'll go soak in the furo for awhile, then get some sleep. I'm beat."**

Day 212. 

"**I have got to get out of this place! The white...sooo much white...it's endless...and the sudden temperatures changes...dear god, it never ends! Always attacked, always hunted, can't hide! Why did Goku tell Akane I was peeping on her? I'm a dead man! **

**Wait...I think she's coming! Oh shit...the tile is cracking! She's pissed and she can sense my energy! Good-bye cruel world!"**

Day 213 

"**I hate Master Goku. He told her on purpose to get her to realize that her rage with real perverts was holding her back. Would have been nice if he told her before she beat the crap out of me.**

**It took a Hiryu-Shoten Kamehameha to stop her too. I was hoping to save that one for Goku.**

**It was such a good move too. I circled her, making my energy very cold. She put out such heat that a normal attack would have worked fine, but I needed something to get through her aura and knock her down, else she'd just use this thing she calls Rage Transformation to overpower it before it could take hold. She's done that before.**

**So I had to improvise. Combining a cold energy version of the Kamehameha with the Hiryu-Shoten Ha did the trick. Instead of starting a cyclone at point-blank range I was able to hit her from afar. Instant that hit, the cyclone formed and struck. Caught her completely off guard too. **

**Still, I wish Goku hadn't told Akane that I was peeping on her. She's never hit me so hard before. I don't think she was holding back at all this time. My shirt is ruined. Completely destroyed. I'll have to rest a couple of days too, that attack drained me. Good thing we're almost done with the training, which Goku says we'll now be working on increasing our power, stamina and speed. Why he felt he had to tell her I was peeping in on her is beyond me.**

**Even if it was true. I had to know what she's been doing over there. And I finally found out that she's been training in her off time. Sneaky, but I can't say I'm not impressed. That's devotion she's never really showed before. Though why she trains in her room in the nude is beyond me. Maybe she's trying to keep from messing up her gi anymore than it is? Not sure. Girls are weird sometimes."**

Day 339

"**Today was brutal. Master Goku said we were ready to go all out. Boy did we ever! He came at us both together, but if there's one thing we learned, it's that we can't match him in brute force. So Akane and I split to avoid his first hit. In some ways that's his usual style of attack. Comes in hard and fast very suddenly and just beats the hell out of you. But he's not one to do the same thing every time. **

**I hit him with a Moko-Takabisha, while Akane fired a Masenko-Ha from opposite sides as we moved apart. She seems to like that particular attack the most. Anyways, it caught Master Goku by surprise as he ran right into the blasts. Didn't hurt him though and he fired two energy waves back at us! I don't know what Akane did, I had to use my Moko-Takabisha Shape Shield to deflect it, and by then Master Goku was attacking me. **

**I can't match him in strength or power, but I have just as great a wealth of techniques as him. And every time we've sparred, I've watched him very closely. I know his moves as good, if not better than him. He broke through my Shield with the first hit, but it bought me a second to counter with an elbow to his chest. I followed up with a punch to his stomach, but he blocked that, so with my elbow still in his chest I backhanded him, then followed up with a knee kick to his stomach and then as he staggered back I spun and back kicked him away.**

**He flipped and landed in a solid stance, and he was grinning. Guess I surprised him, but whenever he grins I always get worried. **

**Akane jumped in at that moment, attacking from behind, but Goku teleported behind her and attacked. But he hit only her after-image! She wasn't very good at that technique, but I guess those late night practices paid off, cause she appeared behind him and then got in two good pressure point strikes, disabling one of his arms, for a little bit anyways. Again, not one of her better techniques, but she nailed it this time. Not very well though. I mean she did try seven times and only got two pressure points. Anyways, I came in with a foot sweep, and she fired another Masenko-Ha at point blank range. Knocked him over this time too.**

**But he rolled and came up, smiling still. And then it was really on. I just sensed him do something, and then all three of us were teleporting, flying, punching and kicking all over the place. Master Goku has us beat completely in energy waves, so we make sure he doesn't get the space to use them. He did use Solar Flare once, but if you turns your hands around you can reflect the technique instead. So Akane and I weren't blinded, but it still did buy him time to get some space in the air. **

**That's when he transformed. **

**It was the first time he had transformed in a fight with us. He'd done it to show how much difference there was from his normal state to Super Saiyan, but never in a fight. Guess he was feeling that we were serious about it and needed to take it up a notch. Now when he transforms he's stronger, faster, more powerful. That much we know. Without the training, we would be toast.**

**With our training though, we're not finished by a long shot. **

**Master Goku had taught us how to use the Kaio-Ken technique. It's pretty good for a temporary power up, but it doesn't last very long. Akane and I talked about it a few months ago, and she suggested I make use of the Neko-Ken, maybe mix the two. That was a bad day too…was stuck in girl form, and trapped in Akane's room as she kept yelling c-c-c-cat at me, but it worked, and now I can use the Neko-Ken without completely losing it. I get energy claws over my hands, my speed and strength is greater, and I have c-c-cat-like maneuverability, and it lasts a whole lot longer. In short, I have all the benefits of the Neko and Kaio-Ken, without the drawbacks.**

**So I powered up using the Neko Kaio-Ken and Akane used Kaio-Ken and flew up . We can't match him in power, but we had him beat in speed and flexibility. It was a great fight. Akane really got in some good hits. Her energy Amiguriken is really fast, which you need against Goku. **

**We went back to keeping Goku from using his energy attacks, always outmaneuvering him or deflecting his hits. I don't know how long it lasted, but it felt like a long time, constantly circling him, keeping him off balance. He finally knocked us both down to the ground. Well…actually he knocked me through the wall of the bathhouse and I was splashed in cold water. **

**Did I mention Akane destroyed my shirt over a month ago? **

**So now I'm stuck in girl form, topless, and it has absolutely no effect on Master Goku. I have no idea why, my girl form is really hot, more so now that I've been training, but he gets this slight twitch in his eyebrow and then looks kinda afraid for a moment and then he's back to normal. **

**Anyways, I jumped out of the wall to land near Akane, and Master Goku is in the air, and preparing a Kamehameha. This was going to be the end of the fight; we just knew it. Akane and I both powered up again, and prepared our own blasts. This isn't a power battle; even together we can't match him in energy. I fired a Hiryu-Shoten Kamehameha before he fired his. The two blasts connected just short of him, but that worked for what I was going for. I'd been preparing the attack ever since we powered up, and the biggest cyclone you'd ever seen erupted, and sucked him in. **

**That's when Akane used her special move. I dunno what she calls it, but she makes a bunch of these energy hammers and throws them rapidly at her target. What's really impressive is that they're energy temperature neutral, so they can't be used to power or ruin a Hiryu-Shoten Ha. Well she does this now, and the cyclone is getting filled with pounding, exploding hammers. Goku's power was dropping…we were winning. We were going to win!**

**And then he transformed into his third form. **

**I have never felt so much power in my life, and he looked so different! Yea, going into that Super Saiyan thing is different, but at least his first and second forms look about the same. That third form though is weird. All that hair, and big eyebrows over his eyes…it's just weird! First time we've seen it too, so that was a shock. He probably did that on purpose for the day we fight.**

**Anyways, he transformed, and used Akane's trick to overpower the cyclone. The shockwave sent both of us flying away again, and that was pretty much the end of the fight. Again, Master Goku won. But we were so close!**

**Next time we'll get him. I know it."**

Day 365

**Today is the day we go back outside. Heh, the others are going to be so surprised. I've never been so strong, and with a wealth of experience. And I owe a lot of it not just to Master Goku, but to Akane too. She's earned the right to be called the strongest woman in Nerima. I know that all too well. Especially since that first no-holds barred, anything goes sparring match. We pretty much repeated that every single day since. And I bet we'll keep training together now. Maybe after Ryouga and Shampoo go through this chamber they'll join us? That'll make for some interesting sessions.**

**Now if she could just get that tomboy temper of hers under complete control…she might actually be more than just kinda cute. Guess we'll see if she can in time.**

**Well, time to go. Farewell journal, it's been handy to have you to write in.**

**Ranma.**

**P.S. We never did beat Master Goku. But I know that someday we will."**

**

* * *

Day 7**

"**Dear Diary,**

**A week has passed…I've never felt so incredibly tired. I've never trained so hard as I have beside Ranma. Master Goku is tireless, always pushing. It ticks me off sometimes…but I know why he does it. **

**I'm already noticing it working though. I'm feeling stronger than ever, and I know I held my arms out over the step longer than Ranma today. I almost couldn't lift them now to write in this, but I felt I had to. It felt so good to beat him at something! I know he wasn't faking when he finally dropped his arms first. I dropped mine right after him, but I still outlasted him!**

**We've shown Master Goku our style and katas, and he just eats it up! He practices them with us like he had been doing them for years. It's annoying, but he does them so well and has managed to polish them so quickly he's shown me where I've been doing my own moves wrong. He hasn't taught us anything yet, saying he'll start that once we can stand off the step. **

**But I have a secret for you Diary. When Ranma goes to bed…I go out to train some more. Goku trains himself during that time, and it's inspiring to watch him work while I keep putting my body out over the step. He just stands out there, completely focused as he moves. He knows I'm out there, but we just do our own thing. It's the only thing that's allowing me to catch up to Ranma in strength…**

**And my body…god my body hurts so much. It's so much stronger and I know I'm getting better, but the pain sometimes gets to me, and I've cried myself to sleep from it.**

**Tomorrow we're getting the day off. I plan to rest in hot water most of the day. Dr. Tofu told me to do that once after a bad training session where I hurt myself from bad technique. I wish he was here now, those pressure point tricks of his would be handy.**

**I'm going to bed Diary. I hope I don't forget to write in here."**

Day 28

"**Dear Diary,**

**Sorry it's been so long since I last wrote in here. I think a month has passed, but I'm not sure. I'm so happy! As bleak as this place is, I've never had such a great time in my life! Doing nothing but hard, honest training, without having to fight off all those pervert boys, or deal with Kuno. It's like a vacation from it all, with nothing but hard work and sweat to keep me busy!**

**I feel so much better than I did last time. I think my body is getting used to the pain. I'm much stronger, and I can feel my aura, which Master Goku calls "my power," growing greatly. He taught us how to sense energy levels, surpress ours, and manipulate it better. Ranma is like a floodlight! He's very strong, much more than I thought he would be. I mean, I knew he was strong, otherwise he wouldn't have beaten so many, but his aura is more than I thought it would be. I'll get stronger though, and I know I'll get results. I'm already seeing them on myself.**

**I must say that my body is looking a lot better than before. Goten's energy made me look kinda bulky, but all this training is smoothing it out. I'm more toned, but slender. I think it's funny that Master Goku makes Ranma train in his girl form too, but then I see how effortless Ranma makes himself move in ways that…that are just perverted! And in girl-form he's looking even hotter than before! **

**I hate how he makes me seem so much lower than him without trying. Stronger, faster, hotter. Not that I care about looking hot! I could care less! There's just Master Goku and Ranma, and I know Ranma is a pervert, and Master Goku is only about the training. And that's all I'm here for. I'm here to get stronger. I'll beat Ranma, and I'll definitely prove myself to be a worthy martial artist."**

Day 44

**Dear Diary,**

**Master Goku has had us step into the white area. It's freaky though! It's hotter than fire one second, then colder than ice the next. I guess it makes us tougher, but I could do without it sometimes. Ranma and I have been sparring often, and we even fly when we're fighting. I've known how good he was before at coming up with attacks so quickly, but it's different when he's actually fighting you. You can see his mind working. **

**Even Master Goku jumps in. It's just been a lot of fun, and I think I surprise Ranma a lot with how quickly I'm picking up things! If only he would stop making fun of my moves or my body when we fight. And sometimes he touches me like Happosai! I REALLY hate that! Why can't he keep his perversion to himself? Master Goku has helped me with my temper, but Ranma pushes it so much, it makes me angry just thinking about it!**

**Anyways, today Master Goku jumped into our match, and Ranma and I instantly went after him. He's the bigger threat, it just makes sense. I use my hammer a lot when he gets involved. I don't know pressure points that well, and I can't hit nearly as hard as those two, so I make do with what I can.**

**We thought we had him this time, but he jumped above us and started to shoot us! Ranma tried to make some kind of chi shield, but I was busy batting the shots back. Didn't work though, he got us both. Says we did good, but we have a long ways to go.**

**No kidding."**

Day 134

"**Dear Diary,**

**We finally were taught some of Master Goku's techniques! And he knows so many of them! I bet Ranma is meditating on them right now, doing his thing. Well he can do that. I'm going to try to master them, at least the ones that work best for me. Teleport, after-image, Solar Flare, Kamehameha, Masenk-Ha, Kaio-Ken, Destructo Disk…lots of energy techniques. This should be lots of fun to use. I already came up with a variation of the Kaio-Ken. I call it my Rage Transformation. It's where I use all my anger at perverts, and increase my power. It's not very controlled though, and it's very hot…and powerful. But I do get a lot stronger and faster. Not sure why my vision turns red though. I'll have to work on it I guess. **

**But there's no way I'd do Fusion! That's just…WRONG! If Ranma was in girl-form we could do it, but then we'd be part of each other…and I'd have all his perverted thoughts...**

**Sorry, I had to shudder a bit there. I don't want to know what he's thinking in that mind of his. **

**Well…actually, sometimes I do. Not in that way! Just…does he respect me? Is he starting to like me? Did he ever like me? What does he really think of me? Am I a martial artist, or just some conquest that all boys seem to think girls are? Does he…think I'm attractive?**

**I don't know why I asked the last one. He can't think I'm attractive. He barely looks at me as it is.**

**Anyways, I'm going to practice some of these moves. Ranma may meditate on them, but I always do better trying them out first."**

Day 200

"**Dear Diary,**

**We're almost done training in here. I can't wait to get out of this place and see the others. I know only a day goes by outside, but it seems so long since I last saw them. We've got a few days off of training, which we really needed. I'm still training on my own though in my free time, and I've come up with some new techniques of my own, mixing some of Master Goku's and Anything Goes styles. I must be getting much better with my techniques; I couldn't mix things up like that before. **

**We've been training really hard though, so I guess it makes sense that I'd start to improve in all aspects of The Arts. **

**It's kinda strange to think it; we've been in hear nearly a year. We're going to be seventeen! I'll be the same age as Nabiki. And I've grown a lot, besides just stronger. My gi barely fits me. It's tight at the chest and hips, and the legs are up from my ankles. I lost one of the sleeves earlier in the year, and I've got some holes in the legs. I'm probably as tall as Nabiki now. I really need to cut my hair, it's down to the middle of my shoulders I think, so I have to bundle it up with clothe I ripped from the other sleeve. **

**But I am looking pretty good. I practice in my room now, just to force me to fight in cramped conditions. Lots of that in Nerima. I've even started to practice in the nude. Sooner or later Happosai will return, and I'm sure he'll get something off me, so I'm trying very hard to train myself to handle fighting without the clothing. I keep the shades drawn though, I don't need Ranma peeping in on me and getting perverted thoughts.**

**They're going to be so surprised when we walk out of here at the end of the year. We both look really different. Ranma's taller, and much stronger. It's…kinda nice to see. Even his girl-form looks better, but I think mine is looking much better than that now. I haven't been able to keep from looking at myself in the mirror just to see all the changes. It's shocking to see how much I've changed. I look really grown up, and that's only at seventeen! If I keep up my training, who knows what I'll look like? **

**Shampoo hasn't got a thing on me. And I'll make sure to prove it to her next time she glomps Ranma. I'll send that kitty flying all the way back to China! **

**I've noticed how much my technique has improved too. Like, as my body changed, so did my style. It just seems so natural, so graceful. Hidden strength, maximum flexibility…and I love it! Ranma can be the flashy one, I'll be the flexible one. **

**Well, I'm going to go practice some more, and then get some sleep."**

Day 212

"**I'm going to kill that Ranma! He's been peeping on me! Staring at me without me knowing, probably thinking perverted thoughts! The bastard! I thought he was better than that but he's proved to me once and for all he's no better than any other of those boys at school! What an idiot!"**

Day 213 

"**Dear Diary,**

**I feel so incredibly bad today. Master Goku told me Ranma was peeping on me so I would get angry and lose control. I guess he felt it was the only way he could show me that what I thought about boys was wrong. My temper, my anger, which I'd used in my Rage Transformation, wasn't helping…but hindering me. **

**And I really did go after Ranma. I was horrible to him. I didn't hold back, and even destroyed his shirt. I went after him so hard, I forced him to cut loose on me. He hit me pretty hard, but…it, it was necessary. It's hard for me to admit it, but Master Goku was right. If I was thinking clearly, if I was in control of myself, not allowing anger to cloud my judgement…I wouldn't have fallen for Ranma's attack. And…I wouldn't have attacked him so hard. He showed me just how strong he was, and how weak I was. I have so far to go, and this…anger problem of mine is holding me back. **

**He'll never respect me or take me seriously if I can't do something about it."**

Day 339

"**Dear Diary, **

**Master Goku said it was time to really fight, and before I could ask him what he meant he attacked! **

**To be honest, we've been kinda expecting it. I think he's been hinting that it was coming for awhile now, so Ranma and I have worked out a plan. We get in close and keep moving in circles, not giving him any room to fire any energy blasts. Ranma knocked Goku back, and then I attacked. Had to out maneuver him and then I hit him in his pressure points to disable him. I wish I could make those moves work better though, I hit him ten times and only two of them actually worked! Anyways, the two of us kept attacking and moving around him. Worked pretty good, until he used a Solar Flare on us. I'm glad Ranma showed me how to use the Solar Reflect to keep from being blinded, but it still bought Master Goku time.**

**And then he went Super Saiyan! **

**We can't take him when he's a Super Saiyan, at least not direct. We had to use speed and maneuverability against him. I powered up with a Kaio-Ken…oooh that's so exhilarating to use too. All that energy flowing through your body…making you feel a hundred times greater than you ever were before…it's incredible! And I still have some of Goten's energy within me. I've kept it as a kind of emergency reserve. I don't know how strong it is, but it's pretty potent, especially now that I know what I'm doing. **

**Anyways, again we went at it, and it just seemed to go on and on. It was the most fun I've ever had in a sparring match. Ranma was using his Neko Kaio-Ken with those glowing energy claws, and I had my Energy Amiguriken, which I think I can modify sometime into a long range attack against energy blasts, and we just fought and fought. Finally, Ranma was knocked away into the bathhouse and I was knocked to the ground. **

**Master Goku doesn't pull his punches. I'm still feeling that punch and kick combo.**

**Ranma came out, in his girl form…and topless. That perv…er…well, no, he wasn't perverted that time. I did destroy his shirt. Anyways Master Goku was preparing a Kamehameha, which we knew would finish it. Ranma hit him with his Hiryu-Shoten Kamehameha and I used my Rapid Fire Hammers. The cyclone was huge, and there were tons of exploding hammers in there. His energy was dropping…we were so close to winning!**

**But he had to transform into this…Super Saiyan, 3 thing of his. Totally destroyed it. We were so close we could taste it! We had to yield though. That was just too much for us to go up against. I thought his power was huge before, but this…he was like a burning sun. **

**There's just no point going up against a Super Saiyan if they can transform so high. **

**Well, I'm going to go relax for awhile, have a bite to eat before Goku and Ranma eat it all. That's more training right there, trying to get food before it's gone. **

**I'm glad we're almost done. I'm ready to take a long break from training.'**

Day 365

"**Dear Diary,**

**This is it! We're done! We're going back out today, a whole lot different. I wish I had a larger gi to change into, but at least I'm covered. Just my arms and feet are exposed. Soon as I'm out I'm going to go find a hot spring and just be away from everyone for awhile. Relax, get a new outfit that fits…oh, that's a problem. I'm going to have to get all new clothes back home! Oh well, I'll deal with that when I get there. **

**I bet Ryouga will pass out when he see me. I'm kinda showing off some cleavage, but there's nothing I can do about that. And Shampoo will be in shock too. I'm rather looking forward to seeing her jaw drop. **

**We fought every day since our big fight, even today. I have to thank both Ranma and Master Goku for everything they've done. I couldn't have improved so much without them. **

**I'm getting called. Time to go. Thanks for being here Diary. I'll keep you with me and add more at a later time.**

**Akane"**

_**The one entry from Goku's journal.**_

"**I can't say how proud I am of these two. They have come a long ways, and are firmly on the path to becoming true warriors. Vegeta will be impressed, even though he won't admit it. It'll definitely give him extra incentive for his students. **

**They'll be among the strongest, if not the strongest, of their home world. I can't say I haven't done all I can to prepare them. They have taken all my teachings, and taught me a lot too. There were times they almost beat me. They challenged me as much as I challenged them, and surprised me more than anyone ever has. They've shown me that I can train an Earthling up to our standards of strength. Maybe someday I'll find someone who will be ready to take up my mantle as protector. **

**Well, time to go! Bye!"**

**TBC….**

_**We return to normal writing in the following chapter, and the last chapter I owed in the bet with AnT is complete! Good thing I didn't put a time limit on it, otherwise I'd have been in big trouble long ago! **_

_**Well, hope you enjoyed this little excursion into the journals of Ranma and Akane. Next time…what did Vegeta do? Is Bison still creating a clone? What are the boys up to? Will Ukyo get breast implants? Will Kuno finally get a brain? I'll try to answer these if possible at some predetermined yet forgotten date.**_

_**¤§¤**_

_**RBLM1A2Tanker**_

_**Aka "Tank"**_


	24. Chapter 21: Change Over!

_**DBZR ½**_

_**Chapter 21: Change-over!**_

Just at the door of the Time Chamber Ranma arched his back, pushing his chest out as a loud series of pops filled the air. He smiled wistfully at the feeling of released endorphins, and relaxed. "That was a great fight this morning. Too bad it's our last one, I was sure we had you."

"Maybe." Goku chuckled as he stood nearby, his arms over his head as he performed a stretch for a moment before lowering his arms, once more looking the serious instructor. "Ranma, I have to tell you that I'm proud with how well you and Akane have performed. You've passed every hurdle I set before you, and did far more than I ever dreamed you could. You'll both be excellent fighters back in your home." He grasped Ranma's shoulder; a shoulder that, a year ago, would have been fairly thin still, barely a young mans. Now it was thick and hard with muscle, yet was still flexible enough that when he squeezed in camaraderie there was no tension.

Ranma gave a slightly embarrassed smile and bowed his head slightly. "I couldn't have become like this without you…and Akane." He said the last as he turned his head to the side.

Akane walked up alongside, and placed her hands on her hips, an eyebrow raised. "You bet you couldn't have done this without me." She smirked. "But I couldn't have improved so much without you two either."

Goku grinned and released the young man's shoulder. "You both did great. You're a perfect team, and I can see that you'll both get stronger." He looked at Akane directly now. "I hope you feel that potential that I told you about now."

Akane nodded once with a large grin. "Yes! I certainly do!"

"Good. Continue your training, and I bet you'll reach it." Goku smiled, and then turned to the door. "Well, shall we go?"

"Yes." The two teens said. Akane stepped forward, grasping the golden handle and pushing it down. The door slowly opened…..

-------

_**Minutes before outside…**_

"You think you're done? We haven't even started yet! This is just the warm up before we go inside! Now **run**!" Vegeta bellowed, firing blast after low powered blast at his students, floating behind them. He knew this was going to be fairly useless until they got into the Time Chamber, but it would be a good start towards the toughening up process he planned for them. That and it rather amused him to watch them flee in terror from something so harmless as colored light. Now the only question was, should he actually now hit them with his blasts to get them used to the pain, or maybe begin having them work on more pushups, situps, rolls and flips? He'd have to think about that. After all, pain tolerance was just as important as stamina, and he certainly didn't want to become bored with just nearly hitting them. So many options for training, and his own personal entertainment, and all at the same time he was planning on some way to get back at the god that caused the mess in the first place.

He gave a feral grin. "_Oh yes, I haven't forgotten about you. I will enjoy destroying you with my bare hands."_ Vegeta thought, firing another series of blasts. As much as he complained about training the two teens, he always did his best thinking when under some sort of pressure; training others appeared to count towards that.

Below him, running as fast as their tired bodies would allow them, Ryoga and Shampoo huffed and panted heavily, their outfits drenched in sweat. Adrenaline was their only other companion, their bodies already aching with pain, not that they could feel it. They had been training from the day before, with a break for meals and for sleep, and back at it since early this morning. In the distance Videl and Gohan were currently training, trading rapid blows as they floated in the air, all under the watchful eye of Piccolo. Videl and Gohan had offered to assist Vegeta in the training, but he naturally rebuffed them. He wanted there to be no potential distractions as he molded them into true warriors. So with that option removed, they turned to training personally, with Piccolo joining in on occasion to keep Gohan on his toes.

In an easy chair alongside a palm tree, Cologne sipped on a cup of green tea, the warm liquid slipping over her aged lips, prompting a contented sigh. "This is an excellent brew Mr. Popo." She said in acceptance and appreciation to the dark skinned being.

Mr. Popo bowed slightly in response. "You're welcome ma'am. If you need more, the kettle is being kept warm for you in the kitchen."

"Thank you." She bowed her head in respect, before raising her cup to sip, and lashing out several times in rapid succession with her staff. Both Ryoga and Shampoo fell, their tired bodies having weakened their awareness and perception and were unable to avoid the attack.

Vegeta floated over and landed beside the older woman, arms crossed over his chest. He snorted in derision. "Pathetic. She telegraphed her motion and you still couldn't avoid it. Clearly you're still children, not yet ready for true battle."

Cologne chuckled. She rather liked Vegeta's style. He was brutal of course, but he was blunt, and he pulled no punches in his opinions of an individuals abilities. He also seemed to be quite the taskmaster, something that both of his students were discovering the hard way.

"Master Vegeta, if I may have a moment of your time…" She said, looking up at the Prince.

For his part he turned his glower down to merely 'annoyed' and gazed at her. "What is it?"

She hopped up onto her staff and began to pogo away a distance from the others as Shampoo and Ryoga caught their breath. Vegeta glanced back at them before following her. She stopped a short distance from the edge of the Lookout, and, balanced perfectly on the head of her staff, looked back at him. "Do you know much about curses, Master Vegeta?"

"I know of them. Get to the point woman." He growled, crossing his arms over his burly chest.

Cologne bowed her head slightly before continuing. "Do you know of Jusenkyo curses? They are different from most. One who falls into a spring at Jusenkyo becomes cursed with the form of whatever being drowned in that spring. Both of them have been at the springs and have cursed forms, which are activated by cold water, and deactivated by warm or hot water. I felt you should know about that."

Vegeta raised an eyebrow slightly. "They are cursed? With what?"

"Ryoga is cursed with the form of a small black piglet, while my Shampoo becomes a purple kitten. Their minds are unaffected, and they can fight in those forms, but they are not fully effective due to the restrictions of their sizes."

Vegeta snorted. "Then they'll have to learn to become effective. Their training will not end just because they transform into animals. The Saiyan race transformed into giant apes under the light of a full moon, and learned to fight effectively in those forms through the blood lust that filled their minds. They're getting any breaks from me, especially if they have full control."

Cologne smiled. She didn't know about the Saiyan's being able to transform, but she had a feeling he would be of this mindset. In fact she counted on it. "Excellent. Perhaps they will learn new techniques in their forms and vice versa."

"If they want to have a chance of facing me, they'll learn." Vegeta replied simply, causing Cologne to blink in surprise.

"You will have them fight you?"

"Of course! If they wish to become stronger, they will need to fight stronger opponents, and other than themselves, that leaves only me." Vegeta grinned. "And now it's time for them to get back to it."

He turned and saw Ryoga laying on his back, before performing a slow situp and lowering again, repeating it. Shampoo, for her part, was trying to do pushups, but her own prestigious bust was a hindrance, becoming crushed into the tile of the floor before she lifted upwards. Still, she completed as full a pushup as she could, sweat beading from her brow as she focused on performing it.

"Ah, excellent. They're already learning not to waste time even when I'm not looking. This will make progress go much faster." Vegeta commented, cracking his knuckles.

Cologne was about to make her own wry comment when Dende called out to them. "They're about to exit the Chamber!"

Within minutes all of them had rushed to the door to witness the return of Ranma and Akane from Goku's training.

"Shampoo think too-too violent girl be mashed into bucket after Airen and Goku beat her." Shampoo commented idly, adjusting her outfit even as she wiped sweat from her brow with a cloth. "Or she give up. Temper too-too strong for training. No good with Shampoo Airen."

"Heh, yea right. She probably hammered Ranma all over the place. She's good at that." Ryoga replied, stretching out while he had the chance.

The others kept their silence; although, Cologne did rap Shampoo on the head for not stretching out like Ryoga.

At that moment, the handle to the door twisted, and the door slowly creaked open. Great white light spilled out, blinding them and causing them to shield their eyes for a bit, even as a shadow appeared in the doorway. Bare feet slowly padded across the tile in a confident, gentle stride.

Dende, Piccolo, Mr. Popo, Vegeta and Gohan were among the first to adjust to the light. Gohan looked impressed, while Vegeta frowned, somewhat in annoyance. Dende and Popo just looked pleased, and Piccolo looked…well, bored. For his part, he leaned against a pillar and watched with a look of disinterest, though there did seem to be a slight look of respect to his eyes now.

Videl was the next to adjust, and she gasped in surprise. Shampoo, Ryoga and Cologne finally managed to adjust, and all three also gasped in shock and surprise. Padding slowly towards them was a young woman, not a girl. Her hair was held back in a ponytail that swayed back and forth from her walk. Both of the sleeves of her gi were ripped off, exposing her toned, yet still slender arms as the tatters of her gi floated at the shoulders. Her walk was graceful, yet hidden power could be felt behind it as the holes in her gi pants exposed tone lines that rippled slightly. Her gi top was at least a size too small, exposing cleavage on a larger bust than had gone in the day before, and the pants molded to her hips that swayed slightly on their own. She was taller, the face more noticeably older, taking on characteristics of both Nabiki and Kasumi; yet, she was unmistakably Akane as she grinned.

"Hi. Missed us?" She asked. Even her voice sounded lower than what they were used to.

Shampoo just gaped in shock. "Who-who you? You not Violent Girl! You too-too built!" She declared, pointing a quavering finger at Akane's larger bust and more noticeable curves.

Akane grinned wider, and then laughed. "Are you jealous now Shampoo? I was gone a year, what did you think would happen?"

"In…deed…" Cologne muttered under her breath, the implications truly occurring to her as the proof of the effectiveness of the Chamber stood before her. It hadn't occurred to her that if the four of them entered, they would also age a year. But that didn't upset her. No, it actually made the wheels in her mind turn faster. "_If Akane looks like this after a year in there, Shampoo's beauty will also be enhanced. Surely Ranma will fall to her charms then!"_

Ryoga, for his part, was passed out. The coroners would have declared it was from massive blood loss, had he not, inexplicably, managed to recover from it at the sound of another voice. It was a male one this time, also deeper than what he remembered, but he would never forget the name of the owner.

"Heh, they're freaking out over you and they haven't even seen you fight. They're in for a real shock then."

Ryoga's head popped up from his personal blood bath to gaze up at Ranma as he stepped out of the room. His heart had stopped from the beauty of Akane, now it stopped from the sheer power that was personified in Ranma.

Shampoo's heart skipped several beats, and even Cologne couldn't help but be a bit flustered as the young man stepped out. His trademark black silk pants were torn in several places, but were clearly a size too small on him as well, conforming to his legs as he walked. His hair looked the same, but that ended the similarities to the old Ranma and this one. His face was more angular, harder, but his eyes still held the same gentle, carefree look to them as he gave them his confident smirk. His shirt was completely gone, leaving him topless, and giving Shampoo and Cologne an excellent view of his powerful shoulders and chest. Cologne was much more interested in his aura, which seemed to be leaking from his body as he walked.

"_He has become far more powerful than I would have ever imagined. This is better than I could have hoped for! The tribe will have him! It must!"_ She thought to herself, while also wistfully wishing she were a younger woman herself.

Gohan nodded, impressed. "Wow, looks like the training in there really paid off for you!" He said, grinning.

"I'll say…" Videl added, almost growling hungrily to herself. Gohan sighed. Vegeta had warned him that when female Saiyans were in the state Videl was in, they would look for any mate they found suitable until the deed was done. He reached over and applied the hold before she could react, and she instantly relaxed. She shook her head off and grinned sheepishly in thanks to Gohan. "Ah, I mean, yea, you really improved…"

Ranma grinned as he walked up alongside Akane. "Yea, we did. Thanks to Goku." He looked back over his shoulder as Goku stepped out, wearing a slightly tattered gi himself, but otherwise looking the same.

"Well Kakarot, it would appear you have fashioned them into something resembling warriors. I'll give you that much. But do they have the warrior spirit?" Vegeta asked, his arms crossed over his chest.

Ranma and Akane both looked over at Vegeta with a smirk. "If you didn't go Super Saiyan, either one of us could take you." Ranma said.

Akane added, "And maybe even if you did."

Vegeta gazed at them quietly, and then allowed a slight smirk. "I like their spirit. Maybe I'll take them up on that challenge after the training."

Ryoga had finally risen to his feet, and in a moment of pure joy, he rushed forward, arms outstretched as he lost himself temporarily to his delusion. "Oh Akane, you returned to me more gorgeous than befo-ACK!"

His joy was cut short as he found his neck and throat were being held in a near vice-like gloved grip. Vegeta pulled the Lost Boy back, while Akane and Ranma simply looked at him with bemused expressions.

"Why-why did you stop me…" Ryoga began when his throat was closed again for a moment, cutting off his air.

"Be quiet you fool! We're doing serious training, not dealing with your pathetic mating needs. And if you bleed on my glove I will fry you!" Vegeta growled as Ryoga's nose started to bleed at the mention of mating. It stopped and withdrew instantly in his fear.

He lowered Ryoga to his level, staring into his eyes. "You're lucky I stopped you. She would have shown you how weak you were, yet you didn't even see her preparing to strike. I will correct this deficiency in you both. Now get in there!" He roared as he literally threw Ryoga into the Chamber, the Lost Boy screaming in terror as he flew into the room.

Cologne blinked, and went over the memory of Ryoga's attempted embrace in her mind, trying to find what Vegeta alluded to.

"_Strange…I don't recall seeing her about to stri-wait…there it is! So subtle…I almost missed it. I did miss it! Her eyes where the only thing that gave it away. That slight narrowing, but her smile didn't change, nor her stance. I must find a way to test their abilities…"_ She thought as her eyes narrowed, her hand to her chin.

Shampoo looked with wide eyes at Vegeta, and then gulped in trepidation. Akane jerked a thumb over her shoulder. "Better get in there. It's not so bad once you get used to it. Besides…I'll be waiting for you out here to show you how much better I am." She smirked, taunting.

This infuriated Shampoo, who withdrew from her weapon space a large chui, or bonbori weapon. "You no better! Shampoo had enough of evil spikey hair man shooting her! Now you taunt Shampoo?! Shampoo kill!!" She rushed forward as fast as her tired body would allow, swinging the bonbori high above her head for a killing strike even as Cologne gave an ineffectual cry for her to stop her attack.

Akane simply continued to smirk as she watched the large, heavy sphere come towards her head while Ranma took a step to the side. The dark haired young woman adjusted her feet and held up a hand, catching the sphere solidly. The force of the blow traveled down to her feet, crackling the tile underneath as she grinned. Her fingers had dented the metal, giving her a natural handhold to pull the weapon out of the surprised Amazon's grip effortlessly. Shampoo tumbled to the tile before rolling and coming up in a ready stance, her eyes wide with shock.

Akane simply held the bonbori in her hand, smirking before dropping it to the floor with a loud clang. "Now you know how outclassed you are."

Vegeta simply watched his student with a smirk of his own. "You're lucky she held back. Next time you might not get that chance."

Akane walked up to Shampoo calmly, while the Amazon quivered, making small steps back, but not many. She was scared out of her wits, but was also determined not to retreat against one who used to be inferior to her. Akane put her hands on her hips and smiled sweetly. "I'm letting you have that free attempt so you know what you're up against. I want you to go train and become stronger, so I can truly show you how much better I've become. You're nothing to me now, which is why I'm not beating you senseless. There's no honor beating a weakling…something you never bothered to consider."

"You-you rival. No honor lost fighting you…" Shampoo gave weakly. Cologne winced; that wasn't going to go over very well.

"Oh really? Well…if you want to play it that way…" Akane commented idly, before suddenly vanishing completely from view. Cologne nearly fell off her staff from the sudden move. Shampoo gasped in shock before feeling Akane's breath float across her ear.

"…we can play that way…'rival.'" Her voice had gained a menacing quality to it that frightened Shampoo to her bones. Akane continued conversationally; although the menace behind it did not lessen. "But I'm not going to. You see, I've grown tired of the games you two play. I could smash you where you stand, and you wouldn't be able to stop me. But I'm not going to. As much as I hate the things you do sometimes, I respect your skill. Which is why I'm going to do this once. We will fight. Just you, and me. I will prove I'm the better martial artist."

Shampoo turned her head to look over her shoulder slightly. "You fight for hand of Airen?"

"Forget Ranma. This is between you and me. We fight, we fight as martial artists. No tricks, no promises, no conditions. We fight until one of us is beaten…not dead." She turned her gaze towards Cologne, which nearly caused the older woman to fall once again. It was a clear warning; _'Don't get involved.'_

The lavender haired girl swallowed, and then nodded. "Fine. We fight to see who better. Shampoo was better before Akane go into Room. Shampoo is better again when come out."

Akane smiled, and walked around in front of Shampoo, arms crossed. "I'll be waiting out here for you to find out." She gave a small, friendly, giggle at the prospect of the fun of a good fight with Shampoo, causing the Amazon to look at her with some trepidation.

"_She too much like Ranma now…but…Shampoo never back down from fight."_ Shampoo thought to herself, before squaring her shoulders and marching into the Time Chamber.

Vegeta laughed slightly. "Well, this should be interesting then. I'll look forward to watching that fight." With that, he too stepped into the room, pulling the door closed behind him.

----------

_**Inside…**_

"Prepare yourselves children." Vegeta said with an evil grin. "You thought we were training before outside? That was just the warm up…" He began to laugh a menacing laugh that sent fear into the two teens hearts, and they both wondered to themselves…just what had they gotten themselves into?

----------

**Journal entries of Shampoo and Ryoga…**

**Day 1 – undetermined end time**

**AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!**

---------------

_**Outside…**_

"Kinda hard on her weren't ya?" Ranma asked Akane, scratching the back of his head as he grinned.

Akane shrugged. "I gave her a goal. Besides, I want a different challenge from you two." She said, gesturing with her head to Goku and then her chosen fiancé.

Ranma, for his part, took on a hurt expression. "Oh, am I becoming too easy for you?" He said, holding a hand to his heart. Goku shook his head, laughing slightly, before shrugging himself.

Akane grinned. "Maybe you are." She teased, her arms crossed under her chest. "But really, I have a score to settle with her. And I really want to beat her in a fair fight." She said the last in an almost angry growl.

Ranma shrugged. "Alright, but I ain't gettin involved when you two fight." He said, stepping away towards the steps that would lead to the open air.

"That's fine. This'll just be between us girls." Akane replied as her arms lowered, beginning to follow after him. "And that doesn't mean you can jump in if you get splashed." She added, pointing an accusatory finger at him. He held up his hands in surrender.

"How about a rematch then?" Videl suddenly called out, causing the two teens to stop and look. Videl walked up with an eager grin on her face, and placed her hands on her hips. "I bet it would be a real good session then."

Gohan chuckled as he said, "Well, it would at least help you get stronger faster than just training with Piccolo and I."

Videl shrugged, and then looked back to Akane. "So, how about it?"

Akane thought it over, cocking her head to the side as she brought a finger up to her cheek. "Hmmm…maybe after I fight Shampoo. I kinda just want to relax for awhile." She said finally, lifting her arms to stretch a bit, which caused her bust to push out in her tight gi. Several small pops could be heard, prompting a happy sigh.

"Ok, deal!" Videl said, holding up a fist and grinning, her minds eye already imagining the fight.

Ranma rolled his head a bit, and then asked, "So where's our training packs? I know we left them out here somewhere…and I really need to change my clothes." He asked. Akane nodded in agreement as she lowered her arms to her sides.

Dende cleared his throat before saying, "I think you guys might need something that's tailored better to your older forms." This made the two teens look at each other, and then at themselves, before grinning sheepishly. "I think I can take care of that though. If you'll come with me…" He trailed off as he began to step down the steps, leading the way, with Piccolo, Videl, Gohan, Ranma and Akane following.

Goku simply smiled, his arms crossed as he watched them walk away, Ranma and Akane both looking up into the deep blue sky and inhaling the fresh air gratefully. "They did really well. Your Earth will be in good hands with them." He said aloud, still watching them walk away.

Cologne looked up at the Saiyan, and then at the dwindling forms of the others. "_Only if those hands happen to be the tribes. There has to be a way to get him into the tribe now. I will have to see how Shampoo turns out before I attempt anything to twist that fight of Akane's into renouncing her claim on him."_ She thought to herself, even as she shivered slightly from the memory of Akane's glare. The elder had a feeling that Akane would be watching for any tricks, and that she might have the power to back up her hidden threat. She brushed it off though. _"She can have all the power she wants, but it won't be enough to defeat all the techniques and skill I have at my disposal. Still, I should not underestimate her. It's a shame she's not fighting now. I would have had a much better idea of what she is capable of."_

Goku stretched a bit and then looked down at her. "Well, shall we go after them?" He said, breaking her out of her reverie.

She looked back up at him and nodded. "Yes, we should." She said, grasping her staff to pogo after them, and to plan.

--------

_**Far away from the Lookout…**_

Shiaku stretched slowly, feeling every inch of her body bend and pull, like a taunt and powerful cable. Her body was perfect, and everyone in the gym knew it. She used to hate gym; that place where her underdeveloped body would be shown off in white T's and red bloomers. All those better developed girls laughing at her as she struggled to climb the rope, or to run…

She smirked as she bent backwards, pushing her full bust into the air in her tight T-shirt. Those days had certainly gone by the wayside, and she enjoyed every second that she was stared at. She could run all day and not be tired, climb the rope fifty times and still be able to climb it again, and be more graceful on the balance beam than those snotty gymnasts.

She stood up slowly, looking around the gym in thought: would she try the parallel bars today, or perhaps try lifting weights? _"Maybe I'll do both at the same time…that'll mess with people's heads."_ Shiaku thought wickedly, grinning as she walked towards the equipment in question, her posterior swaying provocatively in her tight bloomers. _"Next time, I think I'll take on the Boxing and then Karate clubs. So many new abilities to test out: so little time before I take over this place."_

--------

_**In the Ranma universe…**_

Goten sighed. "I'm bored."

"Yea, me too." Trunks replied. "And not one good fighter for us to take on. What's it take to get into a match here?"

Nabiki sat in a lawn chair, wearing a bikini as she sunned herself and sipping lemonade. After a moment, she tilted her shades back. "Where have you guys looked?"

"Well…" Trunks started to say, and then trailed off. Truth was, they hadn't really looked at all. They didn't even know where to look for that matter.

Nabiki gave a knowing smirk before lowering her shades. "I might know of a few places to look." She said casually.

Her breath exploded from her as she found two boys planted themselves into her bare stomach and pelted her with little boy questions. "Wherewherewheretelltelltellcomeon**please**tellus!"

"Geroffa me!" She wheezed before tossing them bodily to the ground. She regained her composure, and took another sip of her drink, before she finally deigned to reply. "I could tell you…for a price."

The boys looked at her. "But, we don't have any money…" Trunks said. It was true. The zenny he had brought with him in his wallet were useless here.

She waved it off. "I wouldn't need much…just a favor for later I think would do nicely." Nabiki said with a pleasant smile.

"Oh, that's it? Ok!" Goten declared happily. Trunks sighed, wiping his forehead. For a moment he was afraid he would have to do some work to get money or something.

"Deal. Now…I've heard of a few street fighters gathering in a park, and on top of some buildings here and there. The one in the park seems to be the usual spot though. I've even heard there's a new one running through them. They say she flies." Nabiki said, before taking a sip of her drink. "I thought that was interesting. The only people I know that fly are you two. So, maybe it's someone else who was stuck here?"

"Really?" Trunks said, scratching the side of his face. "Huh. Maybe…"

"Or maybe someone here figured out how to fly!" Goten interrupted excitedly, laughing happily. "Yay! We get to have fun!"

"Sure…but where is this park? And do they fight all the time there?" Trunks asked, looking at Nabiki expectantly.

"They only fight there at night, but there are some fights during the day. It's rare though, so it's better to go at night." She said. "I'll take you there tonight so you can see."

"Really?! Cool!!!" Trunks exclaimed, before jumping up with glee. Goten jumped up as well, and threw a punch at Trunks, who deflected it with a laugh. In short order, they were laughing and fighting all around the dojo, while Nabiki simply smiled and took a sip of her drink. "_If the fighter is there, I should be able to pick up a lot more cash from a video of that fight."_ She thought to herself, hoping that the one called "Airmaster" would be there. The boys had literally eaten the house clean, and there were other bills to pay coming up.

She just hoped that they would be able to get the boys into the Fuchikawa ratings, so that she could continue to bring some money to the place.

The powers that be certainly knew that they needed it.

--------

_**Miles away…**_

"Is the boy ready?" Bison demanded, gazing down at his head scientist.

"Almost sir. His physical development has been extraordinary, and his mind has taken to the knowledge we have imparted perfectly. Within a few hours, we'll be able to remove him from his chamber, and then the testing and training can begin." The older, frail looking man said without flinching.

Bison looked to the scientist, and then to the glowing chamber. "And how is his potential? Has that changed at all?"

Inside, the body was now that of a young man. Perfectly toned and developed, it floated gently in the fluid, the face mask still attached, legs still curled up towards his chest.

"I'm afraid it has not increased overly much my lord. He is no stronger than many of the top ranked martial artists in the world, which I must note is impressive in and of itself considering he has not left that tank. It is possible that his potential is locked away, and needs the training to tap into it."

"Or it's possible that the advanced process still needs work. Very well. Begin creating another body using the old process. We'll use Gotenks here as our test bed prototype." Bison said with an evil grin. "As soon as he is ready, I want to begin the tournament. How soon before he is ready to fight?"

The scientist looked at a chart, before looking back to Bison. "If these readings are any indication, I would say within a month at the most." This caused the criminal dictator to stare down at the frail old man in surprise.

"Are you sure of this?"

The old man nodded. "Positive. As I said before, his brain is absorbing all that we imprint to him perfectly, and far more rapidly than we could have possibly foreseen. He is much like a computer in that regard. He will obey your every command without fail, and he will acquire new techniques after seeing it once. All indications are that this is highly likely, but actual tests and training will confirm this. With the built in transmitter sending everything he knows or learns to the central computer, we will rapidly gain the knowledge of any fighting technique that exists, and it will be known perfectly. Again, by all indications, this seems to be highly likely."

"But it's not a complete fact. Still, even though his power potential seems low, we might get a potential of a different sort." Bison turned his white eyes back to the floating body, contemplating the possibilities. "Interesting. You will inform me the moment he is ready to be released. I will test him first, and you will find out how good those indications really are."

"Sir." The scientist said with a bow as Bison swept from the room, his cape fluttering behind him.

Inside the tank, the young man's eyes winced slightly before relaxing again, the eyes shifting back and forth rapidly as reams of data poured into his mind from an instrument attached to the side of his head.

TBC……

_**Yes…it is I. LONG overdue, but college takes precedence I'm afraid. But now we have seen what is going on with everyone here. So…what will Ryoga and Shampoo be like when they exit the chamber? Where did Mousse go? Has Kuno died? And who is this "Airmaster" that was spoken of? These things and much more will…probably not be answered in the next chapter, but I do like to tease you with it. :P**_

_**Until next time…**_

_**¤§¤**_


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